Innocence
by Kiva Taliana
Summary: Jack has a little bit of an accident, leaving Ianto and the others to look after him. A minor amount of chaos then ensues.
1. Prologue

It was a cold wet day in Cardiff. The March weather had turned so severely that snow was driving in from off the Bristol Channel and into the city. That was the reason that no one had objected with Jack when he had taken Ianto out, 'weevil hunting'.

"You know full well they spend most of their time in the back of the SUV," Owen had said after they had left.

Gwen hadn't commented, Toshiko had just looked embarrassed and had turned to work hard on what she was doing. After an hour or so Gwen had started to caress the mobile phone in her pocket. Nothing was clearly going to happen tonight so perhaps she could call Rhys, go home and spend time with her husband. The last few days had been tricky. Being newlywed was more work than she had thought.

But then Toshiko had yelped in shock as the rift monitor had suddenly gone off the scale. That would have been fine, a very usual occurrence and whoever was out in the field would go and look. But Jack and Ianto hadn't needed to. It had happened right on top of their signals and Ianto had been evasive about what had happened. To the point that Gwen stopped playing with her phone and started fiddling around in the armoury. Owen had played around in the autopsy room in case he was needed and Toshiko had analysed the activity, in depth.

Ianto and Jack were returning to the hub.

Sirens wailed and the lights flashed. Ianto came through first, with Jack tailing along behind. Owen first look took in the fact that they were both up and walking, with no sign of any physical damage on them. Ianto moved swiftly, running up the stairs towards them. Jack lingered behind idly watching the doors close behind him, and then he turned to the device on his left, something that he had set up a long while back. He had never really told anyone what it did, only not to touch it and where to turn it off when things got hairy.

Gwen watched him as Ianto dashed towards them.

"What happened?" Toshiko asked Ianto as he reached them. He looked a little wild around the eyes, and his suit was slightly rumpled but looked fairly clean.

"Well, it's…" he started and stopped as he followed Gwen's look of concern. Jack had picked something up and was fiddling with it, making the machinery glow.

"Shit!" Ianto said. He turned on his heel and ran back the way he came, jumping the steps and making the chains rattle violently. He reached Jack and kneeling down yanked the cables out of their connections. Jack watched him, idly leaning over to see the view of Ianto's backside as he scrabbled under the machinery to shut it down.

As he pulled back Jack moved upright. Ianto got up, trying to straighten up his clothes as he looked at Jack, tugging down his waistcoat where it had rumpled.

"Look, just don't touch anything, all right! Please!"

Jack's eyes widened as he nodded; he looked a little startled but slowly put the device he was holding down very carefully on the counter as if someone had just explained to him that it was an unexploded bomb. He looked back up at Ianto and nodded, giving a wide-eyed, innocent look.

"Okay," Jack said, sounding contrite. His eyes blinked a little, looking mildly upset at being told off.

"Ianto, what's going on?" Gwen demanded. Ianto turned, he moved back towards them, but this time he took hold of Jack's upper arm, gripping him just above his left elbow and he drew him along. Ianto moved back up the stairs, pushing Jack up in front of him; working on the theory that if Jack was with him there wasn't much mischief that he could really manage to get up to. Well, certainly not of the technical, blowing up, kind of mischief anyway.

Everyone watched with varying levels of shock as Ianto shoved Jack up the steps. The surprising part was that Jack didn't resist. He followed Ianto's guidence without hesitation, watching him carefully. But not quite in the way Jack usually watched Ianto. Then Jack's head turned to look around, looking up at the massive space where the pterodactyl was flying around, and then at everything in the huge room around him.

"Wow!" Jack said appreciatively. Everyone frowned as they looked at him.

"What happened?" Gwen asked again.

That drew Jack's attention and he looked at her, then Toshiko and then Owen before he finally settled back on Ianto. He pointed his finger at the clustered group.

"So I know these guys?" Jack asked.

"Yes," Ianto said, trying to sound patient but his calm was starting to slip. He looked at the three people who were staring at Jack with varying levels of shock.

"There was a bit of an accident," Ianto said. Jack listened to him intently; his eyebrows rose slightly waiting for him to continue.

"Accident?" Toshiko asked. The analysis of the rift activity hadn't really told her anything.

"This big white light hit Jack and…" Ianto paused and looked at him, then at the rest of them.

"He appears to have amnesia."


	2. How It Happened

**For those of you who have seen this story on 'Teaspoon' I'm editing sections of this as I go along, the story will stay much the same, but little nuances of it will change. **

"I didn't actually think you meant real weevil hunting," Ianto said through chattering teeth. The wind cut across them as they made their way around the dock and into the large warehouse. Jack in front of him laughed as he glanced again at his wrist strap.

"So, I'm getting you here under false pretences. Next time you can stay in the SUV, naked and handcuffed."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "No, thank you, once was enough."

Jack gave a full bellied laugh at the memory. "You handcuff me in embarrassing positions all the time."

"In the hub, in private, not in the SUV and proceed to park in on a busy street."

"It's got tinted windows, only I know you're in there," Jack said, hinting at the fact that was the entire point. After he had left Ianto there and disappeared off shopping for half an hour. "And you know exactly why I did it."

Even Ianto managed a smile at that. "You do find interesting ways to get revenge."

Jack gave another laugh, but then as they moved around a corner all of that changed. The set of Jack's shoulders shifted and he raised his gun. Ianto shadowed him, gun also at the ready as they moved into the open warehouse. The wind gave a high whistle as it blew through the broken windows and several pains rattled. Ianto turned ready as he heard a sound but he soon identified it as falling glass. The wind was just increasing the damage to the already ruined building.

"Ianto."

He came back to attention as Jack's call, jogging the last few paces to keep up with him. Jack looked left and Ianto right and they both found exactly…

"Nothing," Jack said.

"Yep."

"I could have sworn I picked up a trace of…"

"Jack?" Ianto turned his gun ready as he looked directly in front of them. The light was tiny, no more than a pin prick that anyone else would have either not seen or dismissed as a trace of snow, or maybe just a speck of dust. Ianto however had a slightly different view on the world, plus the tiny light didn't seem to be behaving in a particularly normal fashion.

It was dancing around, up and down, from side to side and occasionally in a circle, paying no heed to the harsh prevailing wind that was blowing in from their left. Jack turned, gun ready, and frowned as he saw the same thing. His gun dropped for a fraction of a second but raised again as the light grew a little bigger and started to glow a fraction brighter.

"What the hell…?"

"Jack?" Ianto looked at him, wondering what to do. They couldn't shoot a dancing speck of light. "What is it?"

"I don't know, we should…"

The sudden flash was blinding. It seemed to surge from the glowing light, spreading out aiming directly at the pair of them as they stood there watching. Ianto felt a hard shove to his shoulder, sending him sprawling on the floor. He turned in time, putting a hand to his eyes to shield them, to see the light shoot towards Jack. It hit him full on sending him flying backwards.

The glowing orb exploded on impact and then everything returned to the dim light of the late afternoon. Ianto blinked several times trying to shift the flashes of light that danced before his eyes. Slowly he sat up, gun still held in his right hand and he looked over to Jack.

Jack was lying face down on the damp ground, but to Ianto's relief he slowly started to move, getting up onto his hands and knees. Jack shook his head and exhaled heavily. He sat back on his heels and looked around, looking up and down and then around the warehouse. He got to one knee as Ianto made it onto his feet. He wavered for a moment; his eyes still a little sensitive, aching slightly every time he blinked.

He took a few steps forward and touched Jack lightly on the shoulder.

"You okay Jack?"

Ianto stumbled back as Jack lurched up in shock. He spun round and Ianto recoiled further as Jack pointed the gun at him, it was levelled at his face. Ianto could have taken that as reflex but Jack glared at him and backed up several paces, looking around in shock and keeping the gun pointed at him.

"What's going on?" Jack demanded.

"Jack?" Ianto said steadily. Jack glared at him, the gun still firmly levelled in his direction. Ianto didn't move. He looked Jack up and down carefully. "Jack, are you all right?"

Jack's eyes narrowed as he glared at Ianto and still the gun didn't waver.

"Do you mind not pointing that at me?" Ianto asked.

"Why?" Jack asked. He backed up even further. Ianto tried to follow him but he saw Jack's grip tighten on his gun, so he stopped. "How do I know you're not going to shoot me?"

Jack glanced down at the gun still held in Ianto's hand. Ianto looked at Jack. It didn't take a genius to work out something was wrong and the only way to deal with this was probably to reassure Jack he was at least safe.

"Okay," Ianto said.

Very slowly Ianto moved. He leant to his right and crouching slightly dropped his gun on the floor. As he stood up again he took two careful but very significant steps to his left away from it, keeping his hands raised.

"Now I can't shoot you, can I Jack?"

"Why do you keep calling me that, who's Jack?"

"You are," Ianto said. Great, he's been taken over by an alien, Ianto thought to himself. It was an easy enough assumption. Orb of bright light hits Jack; Jack becomes whoever was travelling in light. In their job it was not a great leap of faith.

"No, I'm not," Jack said.

"So, who are you then?" Ianto asked.

He watched Jack frown, his eyes rolled in his head, and he looked away slightly, tilting his head as he thought. Ianto waited. There wasn't much else he could do. Jack seemed confused, angry, almost frightened and with his gun primed and ready Ianto didn't fancy moving, unless he wanted to be shot. Which, quite naturally, he didn't.

For a moment Jack seemed to struggle with himself, looking around, seeing somewhere and someone that was very clearly unfamiliar to him. Eventually however he looked directly at Ianto, his eyes wide, suddenly more scared than angry.

"I… I don't know."

Ianto couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"What do you know?"

Jack's eyes began to grow even wilder.

"What do you remember?" Ianto asked. He changed the question a little starting to get a hint of what had happened to Jack.

"Waking up here," Jack said after another long, eye-rolling, pause. Ianto took a step forward. Jack jerked violently, his fingers moving on the gun, but he didn't back up which Ianto took as a slightly good sign.

"It's all right, Jack. Okay, I'm not going to hurt you," Ianto kept his voice low and steady as he took two steps forward. He kept his hands raised, trying to look at unthreatening as possible but also slightly assertive, while advancing on a frightened, gun-toting person. Jack stood still; he blinked a little as Ianto talked but Ianto saw the subtle body language as his arm relaxed slightly. As he came within touching distance Ianto reached up and took Jack's right wrist.

He could feel the tension running down his arm. His muscles were trembling with it. Ianto took another step, increasing his grip on Jack's wrist. As an added gesture of reassurance Ianto circled his thumb around the inside of Jack's wrist in what he hoped was a slightly intimate gesture. But he still kept his grip tight, hoping exert enough physical authority over Jack to get him to obey.

Gently he pushed Jack's arm down to his side. Ianto was forced to move even closer but he tried to leave a little space between himself and Jack. Just enough to allow Jack some level of personal space. Throughout the procedure Jack didn't move, he watched carefully, his eyes shuttling from side to side as he blinked rapidly. His body still remained tense. Ianto looked at him, hoping to see some sense of Jack lingering behind the blue eyes. But there didn't seem to be any of that. Instead he caught a sense of child-like innocence.

"Okay?" Ianto asked him. Jack leaned in a little closer and sniffed.

"You smell nice."

"Thank you."

Ianto wasn't quite sure how else to answer that.

"Very nice," Jack said, leaning in further.

"Hey! Are you guys all right?" Tosh's voice came over the coms. Jack jerked in panic, jumping back from Ianto, but Ianto kept the grip in his wrist. Jack threw up his left hand to scrabble in his right ear for his com. Ianto took the opportunity to slide his hand down and take the gun away from Jack. With both hands free he pulled the com away from his ear. Ianto pressed his own calmly, to activate it.

"Tosh, it's fine," Ianto said calmly. Jack stopped flailing and stared at him in shock. He backed up as he suddenly realised he didn't have his gun anymore and that Ianto was holding it.

"There was activity, right on top of your location. Did you see anything?"

Ianto gave a heavy sigh, looking at Jack. He was biting down on his lip, looking very glassy eyed.

"Yeah, erm… we've had a little incident. Can I explain it when we get back to the hub?"

"Are you all right? What about Jack?"

"Jack's fine. Look we'll come back straight away. I'll explain when I get back."

With that Ianto cut her off. He couldn't deal with them and Jack at the same time. Jack yanked hard on his com, snapping the device and throwing it away.

"Calm down," Ianto said.

"What was that!" Jack asked, his voice rising in panic.

"It's just a com device."

"Who was that?" Jack asked. His eyes strayed to the gun in Ianto's hand, and then to the one that Ianto had dropped on the floor.

"Do you want your gun back?"

Ianto held it out to him and Jack reached forward to snatch it back. Once he had it in his hands he didn't look like he knew what he wanted to do with it. Although it reassured Ianto that Jack didn't seem to want to point it at him again.

"Why don't you put it away?" Ianto suggested. Jack looked at him in shock. "The holster's on your belt." He added helpfully.

Jack looked down, moving the heavy material of his coat slightly, finding the holster. With shaking hands he managed to put the gun away. Ianto was half tempted to help him but since Jack was so spooked he just let him do it himself. After he had calmed a moment he managed to do it with the usual secure confidence. But then as he looked up he looked utterly insecure again.

"Better?" Ianto asked. Jack nodded, but he didn't look like he really believed it.

"Who was that?" Jack repeated his earlier question.

"That was Toshiko." Ianto explained calmly. "She works for you."

Jack frowned. "No, who'd work for me? Do you?"

"Yes I do, so does Tosh and there's Gwen and Owen as well."

"But I don't know them."

"Well, not at this moment in time, but you did and we'll fix… well, whatever's happened to you. We need to go back and see if we can work out what happened. Okay?"

Jack nodded, his brow furrowed as he looked at Ianto, trying to understand what he was saying. Ianto reached out a hand and was pleased that Jack at least met him a little of the way putting his own hand out so Ianto could take it. His slid his hand around Jack's holding it so he could hopefully reassure him.

"Come on," Ianto said. He paused as he turned and picked up his gun. He could have put it away on his belt, but he felt better keeping it in his hand, just in case. He walked slowly through the warehouse with Jack in tow, and Jack was not exhibiting any of his normal behaviour. He would have looked around, checked the area, even as an almost unconscious gesture. This time his eyes stayed on Ianto, watching him carefully. Ianto suspected the danger had gone but he kept himself on alert, just in case.

However they made it to the SUV without any further incident. The wind was still violently blowing, whistling as it moved between the large buildings. Jack jumped as he heard it but since Ianto didn't pay any attention to him, or it, he settled down quickly enough. Ianto paused in front of the SUV.

"Keys?" he muttered to himself. Then he turned to Jack. "You've got them. I'd better drive, I think."

Jack looked surprised, put patted his coat up and down, fumbling in the material to attempt to find the right pocket. He glanced at Ianto.

"Do I normally drive then?" Jack asked.

"Yes, but I'd rather you didn't drive while you're in… you're current condition."

Ianto watched Jack fiddle for his pockets a moment longer before stepping forward and sliding his hand into Jack's right trouser pocket, where he knew the keys were. Jack jumped in surprise, and his eyes widened as Ianto gathered up the keys and extracted them from Jack's trousers. As he stepped back Jack grinned at him.

"Sorry," Ianto said, ignoring the grin. "But we might have been a while there, and it's too cold to stand about.

Jack bit down on his lower lip and nodded seriously, his eyes were just nothing more than the picture of lost innocence. Jack, in his normal state couldn't have pulled that off in a million years. Ianto cradled the keys in his palm and then activated the door locks.

"It's all right." He reached up and took Jack's arm to guide him to the passenger side of the vehicle. Jack moved with him, again just accepting Ianto's authority.

"We'll get you back to the hub and see if we can work out what's happened to you."

Jack gave a slight nervous smile and scrambled into the SUV. Ianto walked around the front of the car and got in the other side. Jack had already put his seatbelt on and he watched Ianto start the SUV, putting it in gear. Jack watched the entire procedure intently, and then looked up at Ianto. Ianto nearly stalled the SUV at Jack's next movement as he reached out and touched Ianto's nearest thigh, moving it up towards his groin. Ianto took his wrist and moved Jack's hand back, putting it in his lap.

"Not now Jack for God's sake!"

It was going to be a very long night.


	3. Examination

Jack sat on the examination bench in the autopsy room watching everyone move around him. Owen had ordered him stripped from the waist up simply so he could check Jack physically, testing his heart rate and blood pressure.

The blood pressure monitor had caused Jack a great deal of amusement and he had continued to play with it until Owen had removed it from his hands and put it down on his bench. It was then that Jack picked up something else and started to play with it. Owen again took it out of his hands and put it down.

The cycle continued as Ianto and Gwen watched from the upper gantry. Toshiko moved around Owen, scanning Jack with another device trying to see if she could pick up anything. At least anything alien that they could recognise. She frowned as she looked at the reading.

"Anything?" Gwen asked, seeing the look on her face.

"I'm detecting some levels of residual energy, which is probably from the light that hit him, but it's not anything I've really seen before. His body is covered in it, so it must be what's done it. I'll have to do an in depth analysis." Tosh continued to stare at her computer.

"And I can't see anything wrong with him," Owen said. "Open your eyes wide."

Jack obeyed and Owen shined the light into them.

"Move to the left, and then to the right."

Jack did as he was told, moving his eyes as directed. Owen snapped the torch off and then looked around.

"There's nothing wrong with him that I can see. I'll take a blood sample and look deeper if I can."

"Okay," Gwen nodded.

Tosh moved closer to Jack, moving the scanner up and down him. Then she laid it on the side and looked at the information on the read outs that were displayed on the monitor on the wall.

"As far as I can tell the energy is safe, nothing that can hurt him or us."

She glanced to the side as Jack picked up the device; he fiddled with it a little and then pointed it at her, scanning her and then trying it again on himself. It couldn't do any harm; she had revoked any settings it might pick up. So she left Jack to play, which was kind of sweet. She stepped a little closer to Jack, reaching over to pick up another piece of equipment. Jack watched her and scanned her again with the device he held in his left hand and with his right he suddenly reached out to cup her breast gently, sliding his thumb over her nipple.

Toshiko shrieked in shock, pulling back away from him so she slammed against the wall of the autopsy room. She stared at Jack in shock.

"Jack!" Owen roared his name. Jack jumped.

Owen shot forward, yanking the scanner from Jack's hand and slamming it down on the side. All of the other instruments jumped and rattled, the noise echoing around the small, circular room as the metal devices shook in their holders. Owen followed up with the monitor he was holding in his other hand, again the examination trays rattled in protest. He rounded on Jack face contorted with anger.

"Don't touch anything! And don't touch anyone!" Owen yelled at him. "Do you understand me?"

Jack nodded frantically. His hands had frozen in midair as he stared at the sudden activity, of Toshiko pulling back and Owen yanking the device away. Now Jack, very carefully and slowly, put his hands together and slid them between his legs, pressing them together.

"Sorry," he said, putting his head down.

Toshiko took a low heavy breath and then moved back to pick up the item she wanted. This time she was more careful, and Jack in response, leant away from her a little. She went back to examining the data on the screen now keeping a careful distance from Jack, so she was not in arms reach.

Jack looked around in shock, at Owen and Tosh and then up at Gwen and then Ianto. Ianto offered him a slight reassuring smile. Jack looked at him, trying to smile back but he was biting down on his lower lip. He didn't honestly understand what he had done. Instead he looked upset and disturbed.

Ianto looked up at the rest of them.

"It would appear that certain basic instincts are working."

"What just his sex drive?" Gwen asked.

"That and he still knows how to use his gun."

"Does he?"

Ianto shrugged, "he pointed it at me."

Gwen looked at him in shock, Ianto raised his hands off the railings.

"He was lost and frightened. He'd had just lost his memory. He's not going to hurt anyone."

"Oh, you say that now," Owen snapped at him, he picked up a syringe and looked at Jack. "Give me your arm."

Jack did and as Owen tightened his grip around Jack's arm and pushed the needle into his vein Jack yelped.

"Ow!"

"It's just a blood sample." Owen watched the test tube fill up. Jack squirmed on the bed, until Owen let go. Jack pulled his arm back, putting his other hand over the wound that Owen had made. Again his eyes rolled and he looked up at Ianto.

"It's all right, Jack."

"He hurt me."

"You have no idea!" Owen growled turning back. He looked at the others.

"As far as I can tell there is nothing physically wrong with him, heart rate and blood pressure are within normal parameters. I can look at the blood sample and see if anything has got in there. The computer can review it overnight. Other than that…" He looked to Toshiko.

"There are huge amounts of energy surrounding him, actually in him. I can take a test and see how deep it goes, and test it on a cellular level. As far as I can tell though, the energy he's carrying isn't harmful to him or us."

"That's reassuring," Owen said. He turned to look up at the others. "I can scan what little there is of his brain and see if there is any kind of degradation, or damage. But the analysis will take overnight, if you want me to look at everything."

Gwen sighed and looked down at them. "So do it."

"Right," Owen said moving the samples he had taken around. Toshiko backed off and ran up to look at the reading she had taken, glad to be away from Jack. Jack watched them, his eyes wide and hurt.

"So we only have one question," Gwen said looking around, then down at Jack. "What do we do with him in the meantime?"


	4. What To Do With Him

Jack sat in the chair, in what was supposed to be his office. He looked around making sure his hands were firmly clamped between his legs. Ianto had told him to stay here. Actually not told him but had politely begged him to just stay there and please don't touch anything.

Because it was Ianto, Jack tried to do what he was told. Ianto had been nice to him, calm and reassuring, as much as he could. Jack swivelled the chair slightly to look at him. All four of them were clustered at the top of the autopsy room. Gwen and Toshiko sat on the sofa, drinking coffee. Jack had his own cup of coffee, it tasted nice, but it disturbed him because he knew he should know it. Drinking it made him nervous, so he just left it on the side.

Instead he looked at the four of them clustered together, talking about him.

If it had been normal circumstances they would have gone down to the conference room but there was nowhere, that deep underground, where they could leave Jack, out of hearing range but keep him in sight, which appeared to be a necessity. So Ianto had put him in his office and then came out to talk to the others. Through the glass windows they could see if Jack did anything he shouldn't. For the moment, all he did was sit still and watch them anxiously.

"So what do we do?" Tosh asked.

"I need to get home," Gwen said. "Rhys has been calling."

"So go," Owen said.

"What do we do with Jack?" she asked. "We can't leave him alone, and certainly not here. He can't seem to keep his hands off anything."

"Put him in the vaults," Owen shrugged. "He can't get up to much in a cell."

"You can't do that!" Gwen's voice rose slightly. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Jack lean forward in his chair, hearing her voice echo. He watched them; a frown on his face.

"No, we can't," Ianto said calmly. "I know he's been irritating, but he's scared as well. What's he going to feel like if we stuff him down in the vaults and leave him on his own overnight?"

"So, someone stays with him?" Toshiko asked.

"Neither of you two," Owen pointed at Gwen and Tosh. "I'm not being funny, but he doesn't have his boundaries, you can't stay. He didn't even notice he was doing anything wrong when he touched you."

"I know," Tosh said, agreeing with him.

"Could he come home with one of us?" Gwen asked.

"I'd love to see Rhys taking that one," Owen said. "He's put up with a lot but I think Jack as a houseguest might be pushing it."

"One of us could stay here with him," Tosh said.

"Again neither of you," Owen said to the women. Then Owen and Ianto shared a look.

"Oh and I'm not doing it," Owen added, raising his hands and shaking his head adamantly.

"I've been up since four this morning," Ianto said. "I have to sleep and he could get up to all sorts. I can handle him but… maybe its better if I take him home with me."

Owen rolled his eyes. Ianto glared at him.

"And what was that for?" Ianto snapped turning on Owen, who gave a smirk.

"I suppose you'd get to be on top at least," he said.

Ianto's jaw tightened and he took a step towards Owen. Owen moved to follow him squaring up to Ianto. Before it could go any further Gwen moved between them, pushing hard on both of their torso's making them take a step back. She looked up and saw Jack watching anxiously from the office.

Jack didn't know what to do. He sat quietly. Ianto had asked him very nicely, not like Owen who had shouted at him. Jack wanted to behave; he wondered if they really liked him, all these people that knew him. All they seemed to do was shout at each other. It scared him, especially since they didn't seem to know what they wanted to do with him,

He moved the chair, turning to the desk. Glancing over his shoulder he saw the four of them involved in an argument. Carefully he reached out a hand and put his finger against one of the pieces of paper on his desk. He moved it to one side, taking it out of the folder and he looked down at it. There was a symbol on the top and then a huge amount of black scrawls. Jack looked at them, he didn't understand them. It was his room, his office, where he worked and he didn't understand a single thing around him.

He looked up around the room, at the books, papery things that meant nothing to him. There were a few devices but he didn't dare touch them. Ianto might shout at him like Owen had. Jack didn't want that. He didn't want anyone else angry at him, shouting at him.

Jack whimpered, biting down on his lower lip, feeling the tears rush to his eyes. He turned to look at the group of people still talking intently. Having the same conversation a second time.

"I can handle him. I need to sleep though; I can't do that here, if I have to watch him."

"Owen could do it," Toshiko said. Ianto looked at Owen. Owen really didn't want to do that, and Ianto would rather he didn't anyway.

"No offence, but Owen's not going to have the patience for this."

"And you are?"

"Yes," Ianto snapped at Owen. "He can come to my place; he's got some clothes and things there anyway so it won't be any hassle. He can stay there, in my spare room."

"Really?" Owen asked.

"Yes, really!" Ianto snapped at him, determined to keep his voice low. "Do you really think that I would take advantage of him, like this?"

"Does he have everything he needs there?" Gwen asked. Ianto nodded.

"Yeah, I've just done a load of washing, so he'll have clothes, he won't need anything else."

Owen looked at him, "you do his washing?"

Ianto raised his hands, indicating to the facility around him. "Do you really think we have a washing machine hiding around here? Yes, I do his washing."

"And his ironing?" Owen snapped, laughing at the look on Ianto's face. "You sad little bastard!"

Ianto didn't know where it came from. He could normally take Owen's insulting comments but tonight it was enough to push him over the edge. Ianto pushed him hard, sending Owen recoiling backwards. Both Gwen and Tosh rushed to him, worried he might fall and hurt himself.

"Don't worry girls I might be easily breakable but I'm stronger than I look."

"What's going on?" Jack yelled from the doorway. He had got up, hearing the sounds and seeing the altercation and stood there, not daring to come any closer. Tosh and Gwen helped Owen up. Ianto turned to look at Jack.

"Just go and sit down. It's fine, okay."

Jack nodded, taking in Ianto's calm tone. But he looked very unsure.

"Go on Jack, its fine, we won't be long."

Jack frowned but slowly backed up returning to his seat but he stared at them through the glass, intently watching for any other signs of aggression.

"Look, like I said, he's scared. Just leave him to me, overnight at least. I'm not going to do anything to him, but I am the best person to look after him."

"Ianto's right, Jack obviously trusts him," Toshiko said. "You can see it. With him, Jack does as he's told. I mean, we need to keep him safe. I know he scared me but… he's still Jack right?"

"I think we are getting very raw Jack, not refined Jack as we know him." Ianto smiled at her, grateful for the fact she was at least a little understanding. "Which means he's not exactly tactful. He won't do that again, I think."

"Are you sure?" Gwen asked.

"We've told him not to."

"You told him not to touch anything and he was still messing about with equipment after that."

"But we touched it first. I don't know. As far as I know Torchwood does not have a manual for when it's Director loses his memory."

"Oh, one thing Torchwood hasn't catered for," Gwen rolled her eyes. "But we do for when an operative gets pregnant."

"The problem is, Jack would know," Toshiko said.

"But at this moment in time, Jack doesn't, does he?" Owen said. Ianto shook his head.

"No."

"We're all tired, and fed up" Gwen said. "Let's go home. You can handle him, right?"

"Yes Gwen, I would think so by now," Ianto said. "You guys go, I'll lock down and deal with him. I'll look after him, its fine."

The conversation had gone quiet, Jack noted. It was now more mumbling than shouting. He hoped that was a good thing. Leaning over he watched again. The three others started to leave, Ianto was the only one stood there. Jack felt a lurch of panic; Ianto wasn't going to leave him surely? But thankfully Ianto turned and came into the office. He smiled at Jack.

"I didn't touch anything," Jack said, looking guiltily at the papers he had ruffled. Ianto automatically put them straight.

"I know, its fine. I just need to get some things… for you, and then we'll go."

Ianto moved around the desk and started to clamber down into Jack's inner sanctum.

"Go where?" Jack asked. He slid off the chair as he turned it round, scrabbling on the floor. He hadn't even realised the hole was there. "What's down there?"

"Your place, but its best you come to mine." Ianto's head appeared again and he clambered up holding a shirt in one hand. "I haven't ironed anything yet so I'll bring one with me."

"I keep stuff down there?" Jack asked. He looked up at Ianto from where he had crouched on his hands and knees.

"Well, you kind of live down there."

Jack stuck his head down into the hole, looking at the cot bed, small wardrobe and chest of drawers. Then he looked up.

"I live in there?"

"Kind of," Ianto said. "But you can come and stay with me tonight."

Jack smiled and sat up, "really?"

"You can sleep in my spare room."

"Oh," Jack said. But then he looked up and smiled. "But you won't leave me though?"

"No, I'm not going to leave you Jack. I'll look after you, I've said that already."

"A lot," Jack said with a slightly wry smile. "I guess I don't get the point too well."

"I guess not at the moment." Ianto looked at him steadily. Jack, still knelt on the floor, looked back.

"Ianto?"

"What?" Ianto asked as he looked at the scared, anxious look in Jack's eyes. Jack put his hands together, twisting his fingers as he looked up at him. Ianto watched him, seeing his nerves, something that looked very new on Jack.

"I'm all right though? There's nothing wrong with me… that you're not telling me."

Ianto shrugged. "You're fine Jack, apart from the amnesia, of course. I don't think we could hide anything like that, if nothing else we'd need to deal with it. Besides…"

Just in time Ianto stopped before he accidentally told an unknowing Jack about his inability to die. That was not a good conversation topic for an emotionally fragile person, who couldn't remember anything about himself. He shook his head and swiftly moved to end the conversation.

"You're fine Jack, okay? I promise." Ianto smiled and held out his hand to help Jack up. Jack returned the smile and met the hand. Again he accepted what Ianto told him without question. "Come on, let's lock up and get out of here."

"Don't I get lonely living here?" Jack asked as Ianto led him out of the office.

"I don't think so," Ianto lied steadily. "There's always someone about, or something to do. It's never boring here."

"Oh," Jack said. He frowned, not sure how to answer that as he looked around at the huge room. Ianto shut down the necessary systems and took Jack to the door. The last thing he did was shut down the main lights and let the emergency lights come on. It gave the hub a slightly eerie glow and Jack's hand tightened on his.

"It looks lonely in here," Jack said in a very hushed tone. Ianto raised his eyebrows as the door slowly closed behind them.

"Sometimes I suppose, for all of us."


	5. Domestication

"This is nice," Jack said half an hour later as he wandered into Ianto's living room.

"Thank you," Ianto said. He had stopped really noticing it, now he was so used to it. And Jack had never commented like that before. The only time he seemed to pay attention to any of the furnishings was when he was wondering if he could have sex on it, around it, or use it in some fashion.

Ianto wondered, as Jack wandered around looking at pictures and picking up ornaments, if he was actually getting Jack's actual opinion on things, that he never really thought to comment on; or if it was just an entirely different person seeing it. When they got his memory back, he made a mental note to ask Jack.

"I'll put this stuff away and then find something to cook, are you hungry?"

Jack turned, very carefully putting down the china Shire horse he was holding so he didn't damage it and he thought about the question. He was seriously thinking about it by the look on his face.

"I don't know."

"I am, so I make something and we'll eat what we can. Do you want a shower or anything?" Ianto turned to asked him. Again he got the same look and made a very simple decision, he wasn't going to ask Jack anything; he was just going to tell him exactly what to do.

"Come on, if you get a shower now, I'll look for something to eat. Let's hope I can find something."

"Don't you want a shower?" Jack asked. He moved a little closer to Ianto. Again Jack's instinct drove him, making an innuendo that, Ianto realised, he didn't exactly understand.

"I usually do in the morning, you tend to at night."

"Oh," Jack said. "Okay."

Ianto went through to his bedroom, hanging up the shirt of Jack's he had brought with him. One of the ones he had washed was probably dry, he could have used that but he didn't think getting an iron out, with Jack around like this, was such a good idea. It was why putting him in the shower, while Ianto covered most of the cooking duties, was probably his best plan.

Jack tailed along behind him, following him into the bedroom. He looked around at the double bed, wardrobes and the small table that was scattered with whatever Ianto put down when he needed to. There were a few things of Jack's spread around the room, he moved to the table and picked up the braces that were lying there, lifting them up and comparing them to the ones he was wearing.

"Is this my room?" Jack asked innocently.

"No, mine, you can stay in the spare room tonight. It's just opposite so I won't be far away."

"But why are my things here?" Jack asked. He held out the braces. "These are mine? They…look like mine." Again he compared them to the ones he was wearing and Ianto had automatically opened the wardrobe and put Jack's shirt in there, with two sets of trousers and several tee-shirts already occupying space.

"They are," Ianto said. "It's just easy to put them there sometimes."

Jack watched him intently, listening and nodding, but still not quite understanding. Thank God for that, Ianto thought. He turned and reached into the set of plastic drawers that he had bought because they were cheap and he had never got round to replacing them. Taking out a few items of clothing he looked up at Jack.

"Come on, I'll set the shower running and you can get cleaned up while I cook."

"Okay," Jack said compliantly. As Ianto moved out of the room and headed towards the bathroom Jack trotted after him like an obedient, well-trained dog.

Jack turned off the shower very carefully, making sure he did it exactly as Ianto had told him. As he pulled the cord to shut off the heater Jack grinned in pleasure. Then he picked up the towel and started to dry himself off, standing on the bathmat that Ianto had put down.

He had felt a little silly as Ianto had explained everything to him, ever so patiently, while Jack got the feeling he really knew it. Somewhere deep in his mind, he knew how he should know how to behave in Ianto's bathroom, and every sense and instinct was telling him, he had been here a lot, before… well before he forgot.

He put the towel down and looked around. The clothes he had been wearing were dropped in a pile on the floor and Ianto had left out, propped on the edge of the bath, another set of clothes. Jack picked them up and slowly started to dress, pulling on the tracksuit bottoms and loose but soft feeling tee-shirt and even a pair of thick socks.

Then he paused, looking around. Slowly he picked the dark blue towel up off the floor and attempted to fold it. He didn't do a very good job, but he tried his best. For some reason as he struggled with it; he couldn't get the corners to match.

Still, eventually, he managed to sort it out and put it on the rail from where Ianto had picked it up and laid it ready for him. Jack had felt a little embarrassed as Ianto did everything for him. Surely, even if he couldn't remember who he was, he could hang up a towel. He straightened it on the rail and looked around.

He spotted the cabinet and looked around furtively. The bathroom door was closed, after Ianto had assured him strenuously he was only down the small flight of stairs, and round in the kitchen. Jack bit down on his lip, trying to listen for any kind of sounds and then he turned and opened the cabinet. He looked at what was in there, wondering if there was anything of his. Like everything in the house it was neat and tidy, but Jack frowned as he looked at the bottom shelf.

Five brown bottles sat there, two had neat printed labels on them. Three didn't. Jack reached out tentatively touching them and he picked up one of the labelled ones and glared at it in frustration. Again, as with the paperwork in his office, it held something he couldn't understand, but he looked at the bottles and thought that something was wrong. But what it was he was at a very frustrating loss to understand.

His hand moved up to the upper shelf, to a glass bottle. Jack reached and pulled it out looking at the deep green bottle; he opened the top and sniffed it. It was strong, and he recoiled slightly as it caught in his nose and the back of his throat, but he recognised it. Ianto smelt the same. Jack sniffed it again; it wasn't as nice as when he caught it off Ianto. It was warmer then, coming directly off his skin.

"Jack?"

He jumped, spilling some of the liquid. It ran down over his fingers, feeling so cold after the warmth of the shower. Jack put the top back on the bottle, in his haste he almost dropped it. Biting down on his lip he forced himself to hold it steady and he screwed the cap back on and hastily wiped the bottle on the shirt that he had dropped on the floor, trying to remove the traces of the spillage.

"Jack, are you all right?" Ianto called to him.

"I'm fine… I'm just coming." Jack shouted back, almost panicked. He didn't want to be found messing around where he probably shouldn't. Ianto had told him to have a shower and then come and find him. Jack put the bottle back carefully and shut the cabinet. He bundled up the shirt in with the rest of the clothes and rushed to the door.

It took him a while to open it, trying to hold the clothes and manage the handle. He hadn't locked the door, the thought hadn't even occurred to him. Rushing out on to the landing he went down the stairs and he went into the kitchen.

Ianto was stood in front of the oven. Stirring a frying pan full of rice and a saucepan filled with a rich dark sauce. He looked up as Jack entered, lingering in the doorway. As Ianto looked at him Jack glanced down at the bundle of clothes he was holding.

"Where do I put these?"

"I should probably wash them… hang on." He moved the pans, turning the heat down and moving the rice off the hob. Ianto turned to Jack, who was clinging onto his bundle. "Come on."

He took Jack back upstairs, pausing on the landing. "We can put it in the linen bin," he announced, reaching for what Jack was holding. "I'll do it."

"No, I can," Jack said, he flipped up the lid of the white wooden box that was placed discreetly on the landing, perfectly situated between the bathroom and Ianto's bedroom.

"Take the braces off your trousers first. I don't wash them the same way."

Jack nodded, he sat down on the landing, pulled out the shirt first and pushed that into the linen bin. Ianto didn't see him; instead he reached to shut the bathroom door. It was a little like shutting the door after the horse had bolted. All the steam had probably flurried from the room, and he paused as he looked. Reaching out he flipped on the light.

The bathroom, although not exactly neat and tidy, looked better than it usually did after Jack's occupation. He had gathered up his clothes and, Ianto noticed this bit the most; he had put the towel back on the rail. Ianto smiled, flipped off the light and shut the door. Looking down at Jack he realised he had put everything except the braces in the wash.

"Leave them on top, I'll put them away later. Come on, dinner's almost ready."

Jack did so and followed Ianto again into the kitchen. Ianto put the hob back on again and put the rice on the heat and he turned up the gas under the sauce, stirring it and shifting the pineapple chunks around a little. He hadn't cooked this for a long while. It had only come to him because he had found the tin of pineapple chunks lingering at the back of the cupboard, just within their use by date. God knows how long he had had them.

He had faintly managed to pull together an old recipe that he liked but very few people he met did. However Jack seemed to like odd combinations of food, and interesting ways to cook them. Ianto's smoke alarm had been set off an awful lot since Jack had started coming over.

"What is it?" Jack asked.

"Some fried rice with a sweet and sour sauce. It's something my mother came up with when she only had a few bits to put together."

"Do I like it?"

"I don't know," Ianto said. "I've never cooked it for you before."

"I'm sure I will," Jack said, his voice very close to Ianto's ear.

As he realised that Ianto jumped, away from the stove and turning to face Jack. Jack's eyes widened, falling back away from Ianto. Ianto could do nothing but stare at him, so suddenly shocked that Jack's instinct had brought him so close.

Jack had been stood close behind him, his hands resting on the back of Ianto's neck, his forearms propped on Ianto's shoulders so he could look over at what he was doing. Jack had done it so unconsciously that Ianto hadn't realised, until that very moment. It was a gesture Jack did often to him, when they were here and Ianto was doing what he had been doing. For a moment Ianto hadn't even realised, it had seemed so natural, as something that he was used to. Now Jack stared at him, his eyes wide, unsure of what he had done.

"Sorry," Ianto said. "You just startled me then."

"Like Toshiko."

"Well, kind of not the same as that."

"You didn't mind when I touched you before, in the car. You just said 'not now'"

Of course you would remember that, Ianto thought to himself. He took a deep breath and lowered the heat under the rice.

"You don't want to… I mean I stay here, don't I?"

Ianto took a deep breath. "It's not that Jack, it's not. But I can't even think about that, not while you're so vulnerable… it wouldn't be ethical to even consider it."

"Even if I don't mind. I want to. I like you."

How the hell could he not understand what his com was and still want to have sex? Jack's instinctive drives were even more confusing than his usual behaviour. Still, whatever had happened to his mind could not be called an exact science. He had forgotten a lot but not enough in Ianto's mind. He had to now at least explain himself, as gently as possible.

"I know you don't but if you get your memory back you might and… I can't Jack; it's not fair, to you, when I don't think you are capable of making that decision. At least not in an informed capacity, it would be nothing more than a form of abuse."

Jack listened, his face so open and innocent that Ianto felt an urge to shake him until he teeth rattled. He started to regret not leaving him to Owen. There was no way Owen would have this issue.

"Why don't you go and sit in the lounge? This is almost ready, you watch whatever's on telly, and I won't be long."

Jack looked hurt, confused and so many things that Ianto didn't honestly think he was capable of. In a gesture that he hoped couldn't be taken the wrong way he reached out and took Jack's hand squeezing it lightly.

"Go on, I'll bring it through."

It almost broke his heart as he watched Jack retreat to the door, wearing a set of clothes that Ianto had bought for him and Jack had never worn. It seemed silly to Ianto for him to sit around in his normal clothes when he had wanted Jack to relax, be at ease, when he came to stay over here. Which he did more often than the others would ever know. Jack had looked at the clothes originally with a slight amount of indulgence and had put them in one of the drawers, where they had stayed, untouched, until now.

As Ianto looked at him now, he knew the horrifying thought that was going through his head was real. Very real, and morally, highly suspect. But that only made it feel even better.

Ianto really wanted to have sex with Jack. This Jack. The lost innocent Jack who didn't really comprehend what he was doing. Ianto turned back to the dinner, stirring it, feeling very aware of Jack retreating into the lounge.

He couldn't ignore the fact that was spinning around his head. He was wondering what it would be like. To have an innocent, almost virgin like Jack, one that he could probably control utterly, and Jack would let him. Every emotion Jack had shown told Ianto that Jack wanted to be with him, but was that real desire, or insecurity, or just a desire to please.

That was what made Ianto hesitate. Not the thought of what Jack would feel when he got his memory back.

Ianto frowned as he turned off the gas and started to put the rice onto the plates. Would Jack feel the same way, he thought, if the tables were turned. It didn't seem like a huge stretch of the imagination to think that Jack would enjoy trying to seduce him, without his memory, just to try it out. But would he really do it.

No, he bloody well wouldn't. If nothing else, in that scenario when Ianto had his memory restored he would be furious. At such an abuse of innocence, he'd probably kill him. He had to hold onto that fact. How he would feel? He couldn't do it to Jack. Jack wouldn't like it, Ianto said firmly. Gwen, Owen and Tosh wouldn't like it. They had put Jack into his care, trusting him with Jack's safety and well-being.

And Ianto himself wouldn't like it. He couldn't face himself in the morning if he gave into his own temptation. How would he feel afterwards? Satisfied no doubt, physically but also mentally; feeling that he had gained one up on Jack. And that was no decent reason to do it.

No, Jack was his to look after and protect. Ianto put the pots in the sink and picking up the plates, making sure he had the two forks he had put out, he went into the living room.

Jack wasn't on the sofa. Half the large, over stuffed cushions from the sofa were on the floor and Jack sprawled on them avidly watching an episode of Coronation Street. But he turned and looked up at Ianto as he came in. Ianto smiled at the sight of him. He moved around the sofa and offered Jack the plate; he sat up in his fort of cushions and took it.

"Thank you." Jack sniffed it, took a tiny forkful, then one huge one. "Nice," he announced with his mouth full.

"Good." Ianto sat on the sofa and started to eat his own. Jack paused, threw a few cushions up and then clambered up next to Ianto, sitting himself next to him, as close as he dared.

No, Ianto thought to himself, not a chance.


	6. Terror And Comfort

Jack didn't feel tired. He lay on his back, tucked up in the bed in the spare room, staring into the darkness and watching the patterns on the ceiling as the late night traffic drove by. The headlight shone in through the window, spreading out over the ceiling, flickering out as they reached the far corner.

No, he decided, he definitely didn't feel tried. The only reason that he was actually compliantly lying there was that Ianto had been so insistent; going so far as to actually tucking him in. Jack couldn't honestly see any reason why he couldn't stay with Ianto. Ianto had endlessly reassured him that he was only across the hall, if he wanted anything. Jack did want something but Ianto didn't seem to want to give it and Jack couldn't understand that.

He rolled onto his side and tucked his hands under his head. There wasn't much else he could do except stay where he was and wait for the morning. Ianto had been tired, Jack had seen it. He had been having trouble keeping his eyes open while Jack had watched the television, flicking from channel to channel, commenting occasionally. Eventually, Jack had managed, with the help of a large cushion, to snuggle up against Ianto, which had felt very nice and reassuring. Then at the end of it Ianto had put him in a room, on his own.

Jack snuffled his nose into the pillow; it smelt nice and familiar in a faint kind of way. He wasn't sure what the scent was, but he had caught it from somewhere else. It took him a moment to realise it was from Ianto, from his clothes, from the fabric conditioner that he used. Jack also realised disturbingly, it had been on his clothes as well. Ianto must have washed them too.

With a heavy sigh Jack closed his eyes. There was nothing else for him to do but go over the last few hours of his life, the only ones he actually remembered. All he knew from them was he appeared to have a group of people around him, that he wasn't even sure liked him. Except Ianto.

There was no doubt that he at least liked him, and cared for him. Gwen, perhaps too, but she had been very quiet when he was around her, making him doubt that simple fact. Toshiko he had frightened. He had seen that in her face when she had jumped away from him. And Owen certainly didn't like him. Jack picked that one up as clear as a bell. Not just because he shouted at him, there was something else, an undercurrent that Jack didn't understand; because he didn't remember why.

Everything came down to that, small simple fact. Without his memory, he was almost nothing. All he was, everything about him, was what he had been over the last few hours. And that frightened him more than anything else. He reached out a hand to grab onto one of the pillows and pulled it to him, cuddling it to his chest. In reflex he brought his legs up, tucking the pillow closer, pressing his face into it, trying to fight the urge to go and wake up Ianto. Who clearly needed to sleep.

The stillness of that moment was broken. Jack's head jerked up as a scream rent though the air. A second one followed close behind.

Jack sat up in bed, senses suddenly on alert and his heart starting to hammer in his chest. He pushed the pillow away as he struggled to free himself from the duvet, where it had tangled around his legs. From the other room he heard the sound of frightened crying. He finally got his feet on the floor and got up.

A second later he tumbled, falling heavily as his feet caught up around the tracksuit bottoms he had been wearing. It was so hot in bed that he had eventually got fed up of them and had pulled them off and shoved them out onto the floor. He had completely forgotten they were there.

He grunted as he landed heavily on the floor, slamming his arm against the bedside cabinet. It rattled violently, the lamp rocking from side to side under the impact. Jack struggled up, kicking the trousers away from him and, as he lurched up again he slammed his shoulder against the wall, aiming for the door. Trying to make his way in the door, in a place that he was not familiar with, it was all new to him.

Once he struggled out of the door, gripping the door frame as he paused suddenly disorientated. In the end he stepped across the landing, following the sound of the crying, a deep heartfelt sound, that in the dark was filled with terror.

He put out a hand as he crossed the hall. Ianto's room was directly opposite. But the hallway was dark, too hard to really see where the doorframe was. Although Jack was too concerned about Ianto to feel the pain shooting through his arm and shoulder, he didn't want to injure himself again.

As he took two shuffling steps forward he sighed in relief as he gripped the doorframe and struggled through the door. Which Ianto had left open, just in case Jack needed him.

The light was a little better in this room. Directly outside was a streetlight that sent an orange glow in through the thin, rust coloured curtains.

Jack looked around, seeing Ianto on the bed; he was struggling, kicking his legs under the duvet and he whimpered with a high keening sound. Jack clambered onto the bed, kneeling over him.

"Ianto," he asked tentatively. He reached out a hand to touch him, lightly on the shoulder. Ianto started to sob again struggling away from him, trapped in the throes of the nightmare, unaware of Jack next to him. He rolled over, trying to get away, only succeeding in tangling himself further and increasing the panic in his subconscious mind.

Jack tried again, this time he grabbed Ianto's shoulder and shook him, turning him over to face him. Ianto yelped, screaming out again, an animal sound, again filled with terror. But still he didn't wake.

"Ianto, wake up!" Jack shouted, shaking him a little harder. Still there was no sign of him coming round. Jack watched him for another second or so, wondering what to do. Tears prickled behind his eyes, his hand reaching for Ianto's. He could try and get someone else to help, but he didn't know how. Could he call one of the others? Would they know what to do? But Jack didn't know how to get hold of them. They all seemed to keep in contact with each other... Jack's other hand went to his right ear, but he didn't have his ear piece any more. He'd broken it.

However as he took Ianto's hand he felt Ianto grip back, hard, clinging to him. His other arm lashed out, trying to push away whatever was scaring him. Jack grabbed for him, taking him around the waist, pinning the flailing arm to his side as he did so.

The action wasn't gentle as Jack hoisted Ianto up, pulling him close to him. For a moment he didn't even concern himself with that, if he hurt Ianto or not. All he wanted him to do was stop. Jack wanted to make whatever was frightening him go away. He held onto Ianto, pulling him clear of the rucked up bed sheets. He drew Ianto to him, holding him tightly around the waist keeping Ianto's back pressed against his body. The light material of Ianto's pyjamas rubbed against his naked skin, a sensation that made him shiver with pleasure despite his panic.

"Stop it please," Jack begged. He heard his own voice, high and frightened and Ianto whimpered. He couldn't struggle anymore, Jack held onto him too hard, but he still remained tense in the grip. Jack, realising how he sounded, tried again, and thought very carefully before he spoke. He remembered back, over the last few hours, thinking about Ianto's calm voice and how it had soothed him.

"It's all right," he breathed directly into Ianto's ear, trying to sound calm. It at least sounded better than he had a minute ago. "It's all right." Jack repeated himself, his own voice calming as he realised Ianto was relaxing against him. On impulse he moved his head a little and kissed Ianto lightly on the cheek.

Still asleep Ianto moved unconsciously, reacting to the bear hug and soft voice. He started to relax back against Jack. Jack sat back on his heels, slowly moving his legs so he could stretch them out in front of him, which was far more comfortable on the soft mattress. He hitched Ianto a little closer, letting go of his hand and sliding that arm around Ianto's waist, to meet his other arm in an even tighter hug. Jack moved his head down to nuzzle into Ianto's neck. Ianto dropped his head back against Jack's shoulder so he had access to the length of Ianto's throat from his collar bone to his jaw. Slowly and gently Jack planted light kisses up and down his neck.

Ianto's frantic breathing started to steady down into a slow rhythm. He whimpered again, but this time the sound was softer, a sound of pleasure.

"Like that do you?" Jack murmured in a low tone. He felt Ianto shudder against him at the feel of Jack's breath on his neck. Jack closed his eyes, resting his head down on Ianto's shoulder, taking his own careful measured breaths to try and control the frantic hammering of his heart. He could feel himself shaking from the aftershock of his panic and for a moment he was afraid to let Ianto go. But he couldn't sit like that all night, his lower back was starting to tense up at holding Ianto's weight in a sitting position.

The sound of a car rumbled outside and the light shone through, adding a contrasting glow to the street light. Jack looked at Ianto's face as it caught in the illumination. He looked peaceful now, still sleeping. It occurred to Jack that Ianto hadn't even woken up. Wherever he was trapped Ianto couldn't get away.

Jack shivered as the night air started to affect his naked skin, now a little slick with sweat. He moved slowly, scared to break contact with Ianto now he had calmed down from his nightmare. Using one leg he pushed the bed sheets out of the way and slowly turned so he could lie Ianto back down on the bed, gently putting his head down on one of the pillows. Still keeping as much contact with him as possible, Jack reached for the sheets, pulling them back up over both of them.

Ianto stirred slightly at the movement, his breath releasing in a gushing sigh as he settled back down. Jack pulled the covers over him and up over himself. He slid down into the bed lying next to Ianto. Ianto turned, onto his side, his back to Jack. Shuffling in the bed Jack moved up behind him, leaving a little bit of space between them. He put a hand up to gently stroke Ianto's head, as he whimpered again, giving another gentle cry.

Making sure he didn't disturb him Jack lay down behind him, his hand moving from Ianto's head, down over his back, up to his hip and sliding down his thigh. Jack repeated the movement several times, sometimes changing it slightly, so he could gently stroke Ianto's backside, his torso, over his navel. But he always started with his hair and moved down to mid-thigh. He propped himself up on his side, resting his head in his other hand so he could watch Ianto. Every now and again the passing traffic gave him a little glimmer of brilliance and he could see Ianto's sleeping face, settled by Jack's presence in the bed.

After a few minutes, Ianto turned, rolling over, seeking the source of the comfort. He snuggled against Jack. Jack lay back, putting his arm around Ianto to encourage him closer. Ianto snuffled into the pillow and curled himself against Jack, the length of his body pressing against him. Jack shifted to get himself comfortable and allow Ianto to do the same. Then they both settled down and Jack closed his eyes, finding he could now get just a little bit of rest.


	7. Aftershock

Ianto stirred at the sound of the radio alarm kicking into life. He usually let it waft over his head for a few minutes before he got up. As he moved he felt himself curled up in a strong pair of arms, his head resting against Jack's chest.

Without thinking he cuddled into him a little more, picking up the musky scent of Jack's skin, something he was familiar with but it was an extra treat if he woke up to it; to find that he had spent the night curled up asleep with Jack.

For a moment he didn't realise the stir of disturbance in the back of his mind. Instead he pressed himself against Jack, feeling Jack's hand run down over his backside and his erection pressed into his hip as Ianto stretched out, arching his back to push himself closer to the solid form next to him.

Then the realisation hit him. He was lying with Jack, a quite obviously naked and aroused Jack. Ianto started and rolled back out of the embrace. The movement was so violent that Jack had to let him go. Ianto rolled to the side of the bed and got up; struggling out from under the covers, pulling them slightly so Jack's naked body was exposed. Not that he paid much attention, Jack's unselfconsciousness was still fully intact.

"Oh God!" Ianto said turning to look at him. "How did you? When did you?"

Ianto looked around, making sure he was in his own room and that Jack had come to him and not the other way round. He relaxed slightly as he confirmed that much, but as he looked at Jack he tried to remember if something had happened, while he was half asleep. However as he thought that he registered that he was still decently dressed in a pair of pyjamas.

Jack didn't say anything; he sat on the bed, looking up at him in shock. Ianto reached up to run a hand through his hair, pulling on it slightly to make sure he was actually awake and the situation was really happening.

"When did you get into bed with me?"

"Last night," Jack said innocently. His hands started to fiddle with the edge of the duvet and he looked down.

"I told you to stay in the spare room." Ianto glared at him, his eyes wide with shock. They were mirrored by Jack's, because Jack looked up at him with something akin to horror.

"I couldn't!" Jack said, his voice rose in pitch and his lower lip trembled slightly. One hand released the corner of the sheet and he waved it at Ianto. "You were screaming and crying, and I couldn't…"

Jack paused not quite sure what he couldn't do.

"And there wasn't anyone else here, and you wouldn't wake up and when I held your hand, you held on really hard!"

Ianto glanced down, looking at Jack's right arm. There was a trace of bruising up his arm, a deep dark purple that marred his skin.

"What did you do?" Ianto asked. If anyone else saw that, and asked Jack what had gone on they'd no doubt make sure Ianto wasn't left alone with him. Gwen would probably be furious. Jack looked at it, rubbing his arm self-consciously.

"I fell, it was dark and… I tripped."

"Jack, you shouldn't have done that!"

He watched Jack frown, obviously unsure if Ianto meant the getting into bed with him or the falling over.

"You should have just left me alone if I was having a nightmare!"

"I couldn't help it. You only stopped crying when I hugged you."

Ianto opened his mouth to send back an angry biting retort but he stopped. His eyes widened and rolled in his head and his hand that had been in his hair clamped on the back of his neck, as he realised with horror what he had done, or rather hadn't done. With Jack in the flat with him, even though he had made a mental note to take a sedative he had forgotten. He didn't need one if he was in the bed with Jack. It was the one and only reason that he stayed overnight at the hub two nights a week and why Jack came to him another two nights. True, Jack always took advantage of it for sex, but fundamentally it meant Ianto didn't have to take as many sedatives.

With Jack there in the state he was in, and the hassle of actually getting him settled in the spare room, Ianto completely forgot the last thing he should have done that night.

"And I didn't want to leave in case it happened again!" Jack added seeing Ianto's horrified expression and not realising that it was nothing to do with him. Jack looked down, staring at the duvet. He smoothed out the section where he had rumpled it with his hands and Ianto snapped back to attention as he glanced up again.

Jack was biting down on his lower lip as it trembled and then one glistening tear made its way out of the corner of his eye and down his cheek. Ianto still couldn't move; horror and regret mounted up in him leaving him unable to react for a moment.

"I didn't know what else to do!" Jack's voice wavered and a second tear leaked out, chasing the first down over his cheek bone.

"Oh, Jack, I'm sorry."

Ianto moved forward and clambered back on the bed. He moved to Jack's side as he started to sob and gently put an arm around his shoulders. Jack tensed slightly but Ianto moved a little closer and put his other hand across Jack's torso and around his waist. He hugged him gently, his hand moving up to stroke Jack's hair, guiding his head down onto his shoulder.

"I'm sorry; it's not your fault. Oh, don't cry please." Ianto spoke softly, cradling Jack gently as he continued to cry into Ianto's shoulder. Ianto rocked him, murmuring endearments, begging him to calm down and reassuring him it wasn't his fault. Jack had only done his best, what he instinctively thought was right.

Eventually Ianto felt the ice cold tension in his stomach release as Jack's arm curled around his waist and the other reached up to clamp around his neck. He still sniffled but the sobbing had reduced slightly.

"Sorry."

Ianto turned his head slightly and kissed Jack on the temple. "It's not your fault. I forgot to take a sedative, I should have done that."

Jack said nothing, he listened to what Ianto said and one word stuck with him. Sedative. He didn't entirely get the point, but the word made him think back to last night and the cluster of brown bottles in the bathroom, the ones with the labels that he didn't understand. For some reason, those two things seemed connected. His mind brought him to that conclusion, but he wasn't sure what that meant. The other quick thought he had was to say nothing, at least for now.

Instead he stayed in Ianto's gentle embrace while he spoke to him softly and reassured him everything was all right. Jack hadn't meant to upset Ianto by being there in the morning; he just hadn't dared to leave.

"I didn't want to go, in case it happened again," Jack said.

"I know, I know. I didn't mean to frighten you," Ianto murmured, kissing Jack lightly again. Jack sniffed, and he snuggled a little closer. Ianto tightened his grip, not daring to let Jack go until he was sure he had calmed down. At that moment Jack inhaled heavily, resting his head down on Ianto's shoulder and brought up the one thing that Ianto had desperately avoided trying to think about.

"What happens if my memory doesn't come back?"

Ianto closed his eyes and his grip tightened on Jack a little. He had flatly refused to let that thought into his head, firmly keeping the 'when' there rather than the 'if'. He didn't know if the others had considered it because they hadn't brought it up either; they were all just looking for a solution to the problem. Nobody had yet thought of a plan should the problem refuse to go away.

"It will Jack, we'll sort it out," Ianto said, still refusing to let that thought get to him.

"But it might not," Jack said. In his innocence he was quite prepared to think about that reality. So now Ianto had to as well. What would they do if Jack stayed like this?

"It'll be all right, we'll look after you. I'll look after you," Ianto said firmly. They certainly couldn't offload him onto anyone else. Owen would probably be the one to advocate that but it was too risky and Ianto refused to contemplate that anyway. They would have to take care of Jack, all of them. They had coped without him before but coping with him like this was probably going to be a little harder.

"You won't abandon me."

"No, of course not!" Ianto sounded appalled at the thought. Jack snuggled closer to him, reassured by what Ianto said. It was as simple as that. He no longer worried what would happen to him, because he believed what Ianto said, trusting him completely.

Ianto however mulled that over in his mind. The phrasing seemed very significant and it seemed to be a very paranoid feeling in this Jack. That they would leave him, an instinctive reaction that Ianto started to think didn't have much to do with any of them. None of them would ever willingly want to leave, so why did it seem such a fundamental fear with Jack? True he was lost and alone but his current experience didn't give him any reason to think they would abandon him.

It was that word that stuck in Ianto's mind. Abandon. It was the word that Jack used when he had talked a little about The Doctor, and what had happened to separate them. Although the fear was regarding them at the moment, maybe what The Doctor had done was put the seed of doubt in there. Jack had lived for so long to have enough people leave him, through natural causes and Torchwood disasters. That he had learnt to live with.

People willingly walking away from him was something else entirely. That was what hurt Jack but he covered it, like he covered so many other things about himself. But with his emotions and instincts completely raw, with nothing to mask them, Ianto was seeing them clearly, probably for the first time. Jack's guard was completely down.

His musing was interrupted as Jack nuzzled into his neck kissing him lightly, finding the nerve endings, touching them just right, as he always did. Ianto jumped and gasped, but rather than react violently he just pulled away a little.

"Jack," he said in a gentle warning tone. Jack put his head on Ianto's shoulder.

"You didn't mind last night."

Ianto smirked. "Taking advantage of me when I'm asleep, were you. No!" he reiterated firmly as the arm Jack had around his neck moved, sliding down over his chest. Jack slipped his fingers in-between the third and second buttons of his pyjama top. Ianto grabbed his wrist.

"Why not?"

"I explained last night," Ianto said. Jack's hand pulled back slightly but Ianto kept the grip on his wrist.

"But I want to," Jack said stubbornly. But his head then moved a little on Ianto's shoulder. "Why do I know that I want to?"

Ianto paused, took a deep breath making sure that Jack's hands were not going to wander any further before he answered.

"I think that you just seem to remember all of your most basic drives. You knew how to pull a gun, do you know how to use it? Yesterday in the warehouse, you pointed your gun at me."

"Yeah, I can do that and…" Jack paused, his head shifted slightly again. Ianto reached up and ran his fingers through Jack's hair. It settled him a little so Jack could listen to him. After the events overnight Ianto actually thought that Jack could probably process some information.

"I think it's not part of your memory entirely, but people are motivated to do things and maybe that's never lost. Breeding and defence are probably two of the most major animalistic drives, maybe in you there is still some refinement of those two things."

"You talk nice," Jack said.

"Did you understand it Jack?"

"I'm unable to lose certain things even if I don't know why."

"Thereabouts," Ianto said. Jack lifted his head, pulling away a little. They both moved back from the embrace so they could look at each other. Jack smiled.

"But if I want to, why is it so wrong?"

God, you and sex, Ianto said to himself. He took a breath looking down at Jack, naked but his arousal had waned slightly. Ianto looked back up again, quickly, before Jack got any ideas.

"Because I think it would be."

"I don't."

Ianto rolled his eyes a little, "I would. I know you want to, you've made that very clear," he said with a smile. He moved his hands to cup Jack's chin, making sure he kept looking Ianto in the eye.

"But I can't. You're really vulnerable at the moment Jack, and you don't take advantage of people who are vulnerable."

"You don't like me like this," Jack said.

"Oh God," Ianto groaned through gritted teeth. He moved his head forward, putting his forehead against Jack's. "It's not that. I like you, like this. You're very sweet and highly amusing on occasions and you still seem very self aware but that's not the point and I am NOT going to take advantage of you. I wouldn't be able to live with myself, knowing that I had done it… it's wrong Jack. I can't do it."

Jack gave a sigh but he smiled. "And you won't let me take advantage of you."

"Again, no," Ianto said with a smile. Jack sighed.

"What happens if I stay like this?"

"How about we go one day at a time, just for now, okay?"

Jack nodded, and he smiled. "Okay. I'm sorry."

"Give me a few minutes to get a shower and I'll make breakfast," Ianto sat back a little and looked at Jack. "What would you like?"

"What do I like?"

"How about I actually look what I've got before I answer that question?"


	8. Confidentiality

"Sit down then," Owen said to Jack.

"Will you be all right without me?" Ianto asked. "I'm only going to be in the office."

Owen looked up and gave him a very steady glare. Jack watched Owen and then looked up at Ianto. He jumped up and sat on the edge of the examination bed and smiled at Ianto.

"I'm okay," Jack said.

"You're going to be ten seconds away Ianto, relax," Owen said, shaking his head.

All very well for you, Ianto thought. Last night had been a little bit of a trial. He hadn't begrudged Jack that but he was exhausting and clingy. Although the conversation this morning seemed to have gone some way to reassuring Jack. Ianto was staying in the hub so he was on hand, just in case. As he went out of the autopsy room he met Gwen and Tosh.

"Is he all right?" Gwen asked, glancing over his shoulder at Jack. Jack gave her a cheery wave and a smile. Gwen returned both.

"He seems all right," Tosh added sliding on her coat. "Was he okay last night?"

"Fine," Ianto smirked. "Apart from the interrupting me in the shower this morning so I could explain to him how to make coffee, for the third time."

Gwen giggled. "How did it come out?"

"Cold, sour and I redid it without letting him know. I think I might have to lock away my coffee percolator for the time being so he doesn't try it again."

"Don't worry, we can buy you a new one if he breaks it," Tosh said. She glanced at her watch. "We'd better go," she said to Gwen.

"Will you two be okay?" Ianto said, aware that Jack under normal circumstances would be going with them, to follow up the police report that had been sent to them.

"We'll be fine, we've been out without Jack before," Gwen said.

"But you've always had him as back up," Ianto added.

"Not always," Gwen said gently. Ianto flinched; he didn't particularly like being reminded of Jack's disappearance.

"Okay, just let us know if you need anything."

"Sure," Gwen said, she touched his arm briefly and then both of them made for the door. Ianto turned and glanced back at Jack before going into Jack's office. There was a lot for Jack to deal with today, but it was now going to have to be down to Ianto. All the necessary reports would have to be done by him. Still, it wasn't impossible, he could even do a very good forgery of Jack's signature, should it be necessary.

He gave a quick glance into the autopsy room. Jack was watching Owen set up with avid interest. Although he had, Ianto noticed, very carefully slid his hands under his thighs to resist the urge to touch anything.

"Right," Owen said. "I'm just going to have a look at you, like yesterday. It shouldn't take too long; I just need to confirm some of the results from yesterday and perhaps…"

As he turned round he paused. Jack's braces were off his shoulders, he had taken his shirt off and he had pulled his tee-shirt out of the waistband of his trousers. For a moment Owen was baffled, but then it occurred to him that he had said it was like yesterday, and Jack was taking him literally at his word.

"Jack, you don't need to do that. You can keep your clothes on."

Jack paused with his tee-shirt half pulled up and he looked up at Owen. For a moment Owen half expected some kind of facetious, flirtatious remark. Jack lowered the tee-shirt.

"Oh, okay," he said placidly. Very carefully he started to tuck the material back into the waistband of his trousers, not making a very good job of it. Owen moved around behind him to get something, and set the computer up. Jack picked up his shirt to put it back on, lifting his arm and Owen caught sight of the bruises.

"How did you do that?"

Jack glanced at his arm without much interest, but he stopped the process of putting his shirt on.

"I fell over."

Owen raised his eyebrows. He moved closer and took Jack's wrist to inspect the bruises. They were quite mild, just a simple scattering along his arm. Owen didn't honestly know if Jack still bruised for any length of time. It wasn't exactly a fatal kind of injury so maybe his ability to come back from the dead didn't bother with minor things like bruises.

"When?" Owen asked, trying to keep a level of disinterest in his voice.

"Last night, I got up and tripped over my trousers," Jack said truthfully. "I left them on the floor."

Owen looked at him, processing that information. But as he looked at Jack he couldn't honestly see anything wrong with the answer. Plus it was stupid to think that Ianto had done it. There was no reason why, and Jack in this state was liable to tell the truth and hedge around Ianto in a frightened fashion if he had hurt him. Which he wasn't doing. Still Owen made a mental note to check, to find out somehow if Ianto had been doing something he shouldn't, while Jack was like this.

"I'll put something on that just to bring it down a little," Owen said. He let go of Jack's arm. Jack looked at the marks intently, poking them and flinching mildly at the slight shot of pain.

"Are they all right?" Jack asked, still poking.

"Fine, I was just curious how you managed to get them."

Owen went back to what he was originally doing. Jack leant sideways, looking up out of the autopsy room. Ianto walked past, picked up a file from Gwen's desk and wandered back into Jack's office. His movements were entirely unconscious as he became absorbed in the work he needed to do. Jack waited until he was sure Ianto was gone.

"Owen," he said a little furtively.

"What?" Owen asked still rummaging around wondering where the hell his scanner was. Toshiko had probably taken it again, he seethed. He stopped seething as he found it under a discarded sheet. Jack paused, and leant forward a little.

"Did you know that Ianto has nightmares?"

"Yep," Owen said, not really registering what Jack was saying. So distracted by what he was looking for, he also gave more of an answer than he probably should. "That's why I prescribe him those sedatives."

"What all of them?" Jack asked. Owen's head came up and he turned around to look at Jack. Jack blinked in shock at the sudden violent movement. His eyes stayed on Owen, looking at him innocently. Owen moved closer to Jack and peered out of the autopsy room. Ianto still wasn't anywhere close. Owen looked down at Jack's arm again.

"Did he have a nightmare last night?" Owen asked. Jack nodded.

"He was screaming and crying but he wouldn't wake up. I cuddled him and he stopped."

Normally that would have been way too much information for Owen, but he suddenly got the feeling he needed to know as much as possible.

"Was that when you did this? When he had his nightmare?" Owen indicated the bruises. Ianto might have hurt him by accident if his nightmare was violent enough.

Jack nodded, "when I got up I tripped. I didn't know the way very well from the spare room. I stayed with him, when he stopped crying. He said he forgot to take his sedative, that's why it happened. Why does he have nightmares?"

Owen grimaced. Ianto hadn't been forthcoming about the reasons behind it but Owen could guess it was something to do with Lisa, Canary Wharf and the mess that had been left there. Jack had already hinted that Ianto needed something before Owen had given him a prescription of a rather powerful sedative.

"People do," Owen said. He didn't really want to get into an in-depth discussion about Ianto's subconscious neurosis. Instead he looked up at Jack. "Did you see where he keeps his pills then?"

Jack nodded, "I think so."

Owen chewed his lip slightly and in an unconscious gesture fiddled with the bandage around his hand. He had better get Toshiko to change them today he thought to himself. Then he went back to his current dilemma. It was probably highly unethical to ask him, or at least ask Jack in this state, instead of Ianto himself or an all knowing, secretive Jack.

"So what do you mean all of them? How many does he have?"

"There were bottles in the cabinet, in the bathroom."

"How many?" Owen persisted. Jack frowned and thought, not only had his ability to read been affected, he didn't really seem to understand the concept of numbers; however, he still has his logic. Owen watched him very meticulously work out on his hand how many bottles he had actually seen. Eventually Jack held up one hand his fingers and thumb splayed to indicate the number.

"Five, he had five?"

Jack looked at his hand, and then nodded. "That many," he added, using his other hand to indicate his fingers.

"Did all the bottles look the same?"

Jack frowned. "Two had labels on, they had that funny picture on it," Jack pointed helpfully at the Torchwood symbol on the computer screen. "And three didn't, they were bigger."

Owen thought about that. Two obviously then came from Torchwood. One from Owen himself but he wouldn't have put it past Jack to get some more, if he had played down the problem in the first place. But the three others were Ianto's doing, they had to be. Jack was probably the only one who knew the problem in depth, or at least he did until now, and he also knew how often Ianto had the nightmares. Owen, frustratingly, didn't.

He gave a heavy sigh; Jack put his hand down, watching Owen with wide eyes and waiting for some kind of response from him. He turned away and grabbed the scanner and started to do exactly what he was meant to be doing.

"Jack?" he said slowly. Jack looked at him, watching the scanner as Owen moved it. Owen paused, waiting until Jack met his gaze. "It's probably best that you don't tell Ianto that you told me."

Jack blinked, listening seriously. He started to swing his legs as he sat on the bench, almost kicking Owen on the knee. Fortunately he moved out of the way in time. He said nothing though; he didn't want to have to go into a long drawn out explanation as to why he couldn't get injured.

"Why not?" Jack eventually asked.

Because there was no way in a million years you would have told me that if you were yourself, and neither would Ianto, Owen thought to himself. He had to find a better way to phrase it than that, to the wide-eyed man sat watching him intently. Even Owen had to concede that it wasn't Jack's fault. He didn't seem to know any better. Maybe, Owen thought, it perhaps wasn't such a good idea to let Ianto look after Jack. He was just a little too close to him and Jack was probably in danger of revealing a lot of intimate secrets without even realising he was doing it.

There was a time Owen may have tried to take advantage of that, but he didn't feel like it now. If nothing else, if Jack got his memory back, he would deliberately smash his kneecap, and probably the other one as well for good measure.

Owen moved closer, leaning against the bench.

"Because it's probably something that Ianto doesn't like to talk about much; his nightmares. And it's not fair to people to talk about them behind their backs."

"You've been talking about me." Jack pointed out. There had been a couple of long discussions, about him, but without him in the room. Owen rolled his eyes.

"Okay, it's sometimes for somebody's own good but you don't want to upset Ianto do you?"

Jack shook his head violently, his eyes widening even further.

"Well, just trust me on this Jack. Don't mention that we've had this discussion."

"I shouldn't have said anything." Jack said despondently. Owen picked up his torch and turned back to Jack.

"Look straight ahead."

Jack did, Owen as he examined him carried on talking.

"Yes, you should. It's something I need to know, but I'm the one that should have a talk about it with Ianto. Not you. Don't tell him what you told me, all right. And to the left."

Jack turned his eyes obediently. "Okay."

It wasn't lost on Owen that Jack answered a little hesitantly. As if, from Owen's reaction, and the sheer fact that Jack had waited until Ianto was out of earshot, confirmed to him that he had done something wrong. In Owen's opinion he hadn't, but he wouldn't bring it up with Ianto, he'd bring it up with Jack. When Jack had his memory restored he and Owen were going to have a very long talk.

Neither of them reacted as they heard the sound of Ianto's voice out in the hub, until there was the sound of running and Ianto appeared in the archway.

"Owen!"

"What?"

Ianto took a breath, "it's Gwen, they're trapped in that old house; the one that the police passed onto us, the strange noises. Two weevils and what looks like a brood of young."

"Shit!" Owen dropped what he was doing and dashed up the stairs yanking his lab coat off as he ran. Ianto pulled his gun and checked it was loaded. Then he looked down at Jack, sat on the bench, watching them. Owen stopped by Ianto and followed his gaze.

"What do we do with him?"

"He'll have to come with us," Ianto said. Jack hopped off the bench, he grinned in excitement. Owen looked steadily at Ianto.

"Now would be a good time to reconsider the vault option."

"Owen, we are not locking him up. He can come with us and stay in the back of the SUV."

Owen gave a heavy sigh and rolled his eyes. "Fine, but you're taking responsibility for him."

"Fine, let's go!"


	9. Girl Talk

"He seems all right," Toshiko said as they walked out to the car park. By mutual agreement they had decided to leave the SUV and take Gwen's car. It was far more practical, plus Gwen felt a little self-conscious driving the official Torchwood vehicle. That had come about after Jack's disappearance and the appearance of the SUV, and the reaction she knew it created, made her feel wary of using it. Plus, it would take forever to adjust the seat and mirrors.

"I guess. Do you think one of us should offer to look after him tonight? If he's not back to normal." Gwen asked. "Give Ianto a break."

Toshiko paused and looked over the car roof at her. Her face tensed slightly.

"I suppose but I don't feel comfortable being alone with him."

She got into the car and Gwen followed suit, getting in behind the wheel. As she put her seatbelt on she addressed Toshiko.

"I don't think he's really dangerous. I don't think he'd really do anything, Tosh."

There was a pause, Gwen looked up. Toshiko shifted about uncomfortably.

"I know but…" she shrugged. "I don't mind if someone's with me, I just don't want to be alone with him."

Gwen looked at her, frowning a little. She realised it really bothered her. Jack's probably instinctive, but at the time innocent, behaviour last night had really frightened her. Gwen had never had much pause to think about it but as she started her car she did now.

There were little things that on their own, which had no significance if you didn't add them up but it occurred to her it was very rare for Tosh to ever go anywhere alone with Jack. True on occasion she had to, and she had been forced to rely on him when they had both been caught in the time slip that trapped them in 1941. However, most of the time after a mission alone with Jack Toshiko was rather subdued.

In the time she had been with Torchwood Gwen had never been truly afraid of Jack. He was unnerving at times and annoying for another good portion of it, but frightening was not something she would think of.

Perhaps Toshiko had seen some other side of him. Or maybe it was just something else, beyond that, which made Jack something she was nervous around.

Still, now was not the time to make an issue of anything like that. They had this house to check out. Gwen indicated and took a right turn.

"I told Rhys a little bit about it; maybe we could look after him. Although our flat's not very big, he'd have to stay on the sofa. I don't know how Ianto affords his flat; does he get paid more than us?"

"I don't think so," Toshiko said. "But I think Jack pays part of his rent."

Gwen raised her eyebrows at that, glancing at Toshiko.

"Are you sure?"

"I think so; they were discussing it one day when I came into work. It may have something to do with Ianto doing all of Jack's domestic stuff."

"I never really realised just how involved they were. I know Ianto's…" Gwen paused, concentrating on the road for a moment. Should she say in-love, smitten or obsessed? She didn't know which adjective to use, or were all three appropriate. Toshiko said nothing; she concentrated on checking the equipment she had brought with her.

"I don't think Ianto will let anyone else look after him," Toshiko said, she paused rummaging and looked up at Gwen. "Do you think he… with Jack… last night?"

Gwen glanced at her, trying to look outraged but she didn't make a very good job of it. Because she had wondered the same thing. Jack had come in looking very happy, tailing after Ianto. In contrast Ianto had looked a little tired, but his throwaway comment about Jack interrupting him in the shower had made her wonder.

It was one of the reasons she was thinking about offering to look after Jack. She had said it to Tosh, to get the idea in motion. However, she was of the same opinion, Ianto would refuse. Gwen wondered if there was anyway she could get to talk to Jack, to find out. She doubted, at the moment, that he had any sense of discretion.

"No," she said firmly now, shaking her head. She turned to look at Toshiko and she smiled. "I don't think Ianto would do that." She sounded confident of the fact, but by the look on Tosh's face, there was clearly some doubt showing.

"Are you sure?" Toshiko said. "I mean Jack obviously still… understands that. I mean he groped me pretty expertly."

"Ianto wouldn't take advantage of him, would he?" Gwen asked. All façade now gone, there was no point trying to hide it. Both of them had hinted at their doubts. They shared a look as Gwen paused at some traffic lights.

"I mean it's none of our business, what they get up to…" she said.

"No," Toshiko said.

"But I mean, Jack's not really Jack at the moment, maybe we should ask him, or Ianto."

"Maybe," Toshiko didn't sound convinced. "Will you? And what if Jack doesn't get his memory back. If Owen can't work out what happened, what if we can't fix it."

"We'll fix it," Gwen said. "It might take a while though."

"What about Jack and Ianto? Are you going to really say anything? You could mention it to Owen."

Gwen didn't answer; they were nearly there, at their destination. She didn't want to answer. Deep down she knew she wanted Jack away from Ianto, but not for the reason that Tosh was thinking. She realised there was a slight trace of jealousy. Jack flirted with her, with everyone to some degree or another, depending on their response to him. He was mild with Toshiko, annoying with Owen, and very full on with both Ianto and her. Probably her more than Ianto.

That was where the difference lay now. Jack's basic, innocent drive, the one that they had seen over the last few hours was almost directly focussed on Ianto. His idle grope of Toshiko was probably nothing more than an experimental touch, a more open expression of his flirting. But the most prominent part of his drive had been directed at Ianto. It was quite clear that Jack was very emotionally attached. Whether by instinct or the fact that Ianto was more protective of him.

But Gwen didn't know if that was just because Ianto had been looking after him, or because Ianto was what Jack really wanted. And that was really getting to her.

It wasn't just Jack whose basic feelings, always hidden by a cluster of experience and memories that were now so raw. It seemed to Gwen, as she thought about her own feelings, Toshiko's fears, Owen open anger and Ianto's possessive behaviour, that they were all exposed. All of them reacted to Jack, and with Jack laid bear, they all seemed to have been opened up to the same thing.

Slowly she turned and pulled the car up to the kerb. Thankful she could end the conversation without answering Toshiko's question.

"We're here."


	10. Old Friends

Owen screeched the SUV to a halt. As it stopped all three of them were thrown forward in their seats. Ianto in the passenger seat and Jack behind him in the back.

"He drives quicker than you," Jack said to Ianto.

"This is an emergency," Owen snapped. "And that's all we need." He waved a hand at the police cars parked by the old abandoned house. "Especially that," he added. Ianto followed his gaze. Kathy Swanson was stood outside the house, with two uniformed officers, and one other plain clothes policeman.

"At least they haven't gone in," Ianto said. He opened the passenger door and got out. Jack followed him, looking up at the house. It was an old, tumbled down Victorian affair. The windows were gone, the frames rotted through. Part of the brickwork was crumbling and the roof was missing a good number of tiles. Up one side of the house grew a thick ivy plant. It was dead in patches, the leaves turned brown, gently crumbling away

"Pretty," Jack said, looking at the house.

"A complete wreck," Owen commented.

"Still pretty," Jack insisted stubbornly. He looked at Ianto for some kind of reaction. Ianto smiled at him.

"If you like it Jack, it's pretty."

Owen groaned and rolled his eyes.

"Problem, Dr Harper?" Kathy asked, stalking up to them. Owen smiled at her, moving forward to cut her off. The last thing he needed was her anywhere near Jack. The Cardiff police were not their biggest fans, although they were often very glad to dump problems on them when they needed to. It was a very much a hate/hate, often one way street relationship. Which Jack seemed to revel in, not something he could do now, however.

"Not at all, is there any reason you're here? Only as far as I knew, you'd passed this onto us, for some reason."

"We had several emergency calls about the noises coming from the house, so we thought we had better attend. We didn't realise some of you lot were already here." Kathy glared at Jack. "And besides we didn't pass it onto you, your boss took it away from us."

Jack looked startled and did not give the glib retort that Kathy was expecting. Instead he looked at her blankly.

"Did I?"

Before Kathy could snap an answer, Owen took her arm and moved her forward. But she also noticed Ianto take Jack and push him back towards the SUV.

"Jack, you stay here," Ianto said. Jack looked up at the building.

"Shouldn't I help?"

"No. Not this time. Me and Owen need to get in there, just stay, okay, we won't be long."

Ianto picked up the anti-weevil spray, cuffs and everything else they would probably need. And he pressed down on his com.

"Gwen!"

"Ianto! Fucking hurry up!" Underneath the sound of her voice was the sound of banging and growling.

"We're outside, so are the police." Ianto turned, leaving Jack where he was and he jogged over to Owen. By the sound of it they couldn't waste any time. "Where are you?"

"Upstairs, the door right opposite the stairs. We've barricaded ourselves in. One weevil's trying to get in; I don't know where the other is, presumably with the brood."

"Where?" Ianto asked.

"They're nesting in the back of the dining room. It's one huge room, you can't miss the nest they've packed a ton of old furniture around it."

"Right, Gwen," Owen said. "We'll come in. Ianto go round the back, deal with the second one. I'll take the front door, distract the other. As soon as we have it away from the door, you two come out, and work as back up."

"Okay," Gwen said.

Owen nodded at Ianto.

Jack watched them from a distance. Ianto ran in through the gap in the wall – where presumably there had once been a gate - and around the side of the house, through the garden. He disappeared through the ram-shackled fence. He had his gun in one hand and the spray in the other. Owen made straight for the front door, disappearing into the main area of the house.

As he stood there Jack gripped onto the open door of the SUV. He felt a little torn as to what to do. Under normal circumstances he presumed that he would also be involved. Probably leading any attack. Ianto had explained to him that he was in charge. He should have known what he was doing.

But of course now, he didn't.

Instead he was reduced to standing outside, quivering in terror because of what was going on in the house.

"Not joining your troops then, Captain?"

Jack jumped and stared at the woman who had walked up to him. He looked at her dark skin, her hair in plaits and her long legs neatly hidden under her pencil skirt. He shifted on his feet and gripped onto the door, unsure of what to say.

"Jack?" she asked, frowning slightly. Jack looked down at the floor. She seemed like a nice lady, very pretty but Jack knew better than to touch after he had upset Tosh last night. And Owen today had warned him about saying anything he shouldn't. So Jack was at a loss as to what to do.

"What's the matter with him, Boss? Cat got his tongue. By his reputation he's bound to have licked one."

The man who spoke looked at his friends. The two uniformed officers glanced at him and then each other then they all laughed. Kathy watched Jack. He stared at them with shock and incomprehension. He didn't understand the conversation or what they were hinting at. Normally, he'd had been ready with some kind of comeback, or he simply radiated enough confidence with a threat of underlying violence that it put people off saying anything at all.

Now, instead, he just looked confused and nervous. His worried eyes moved from her to the house. There were no sounds coming from inside. Jack didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

Their plan seemed quite sensible to him. One in the front, one around the back and attack on both sides. From what he had heard of the conversation there were only two things to deal with, and somehow Jack didn't doubt that all four of them could handle it. It was four against two, which were good odds. Still he couldn't shift the nervous, gnawing feeling from the pit of his stomach.

He should have been in there helping. None of them wanted to put him in danger, while he was like this. Vulnerable was the word Ianto used. He didn't feel very vulnerable, he just felt stupid. Again he felt himself chewing on his lower lip, shifting his feet nervously. Maybe they should have left him behind, perhaps that would have been better.

"Jack, are you all right?" Kathy eventually asked. It didn't take a genius to realise that there was something seriously wrong with him. Even the uniformed officers had stopped trying to wind him up and they were now just looking at him in curiosity, whispering between themselves.

Kathy reached up and took his arm, where his hand was clinging tightly to the door frame.

"Jack?" she asked again. He blinked at her again; surprised by the fact that she had touched him, although all she had hold of was the thick material of his coat. Everyone else didn't want to go anywhere near him, apart from Ianto, and even he was wary at the moment.

Now he was in a serious quandary. He wasn't quite sure where the feeling came from, but by the way the other officers had spoken to him he thought it was probably best that they didn't know about his current condition. He gave a smile, as charming as he could make it and he patted her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze for good measure.

"Don't worry, everything's fine."

Kathy Swanson frowned. Jack's smile faded as he saw the irritation on his face. He hadn't actually meant it to sound patronising but that was exactly what it seemed like to her. Jack was brushing her off. Which was entirely true but he wasn't doing it for the reasons that she was assuming.

She snatched her hand back. Jack jumped slightly and stepped back, moving closer to the open door of the SUV, hoping to use it as a shield, huddling against it slightly. Kathy's frown deepened. She looked ready to say something else but there was a sudden shout from inside the house.

A second later she was sent flying, landing heavily on the floor as Jack rushed past her. He didn't even look back as he ran towards the house. Jack had immediately recognised the shout, filled with pain, anger and outrage. It was Ianto's voice. Jack knew it from last night. It wasn't quite the same, but it was similar enough to throw Jack's protective instincts into overdrive.

He rushed to the house, leaping the three foot wall surrounding it with an elegant grace, his coat flying out behind him. He had his gun ready; no one had thought to take it off him, even Ianto, who had had it rather dangerously waved in his face.

Kathy felt herself helped up by the two uniformed officers and they watched Jack barrel into the house. There was a crashing sound from inside and the yelp of pain increased. They watched Jack disappear and the PC on Kathy's left snarled.

"Show off!"


	11. And Weevils

The plan, as it went, seemed quite sensible. They kept the coms open, and Ianto quietly commentated until he was in through the utility room and heading into the kitchen.

"Right, I'm going in," Owen said. "You two get ready," he added to Tosh and Gwen.

He crashed in through the front door and looked up. The door at the top of the stairs was half battered, scratched to pieces and several panels were missing where the angry beast had tried to get to Gwen and Tosh. Owen raised his gun, his eyes wide. He had faced down weevils before but not one that looked so enraged as this one. It turned on him as the front door slammed open against the wall.

It hunched its shoulders and growled at him. Owen idly wondered if it was rabid. Drool was dribbling down either side of its mouth and its upper lip curled back. In the sunlight, that was weakly fighting its way through the nearby window; its eyes almost seemed red.

There was only a few seconds for Owen to assess the situation. Then he was forced to throw himself sideways. He scrabbled through the open door into the lounge area, as the weevil attacked. It leapt forward diving down the stairs directly for him. Owen had enough time to think that he didn't want a heavy, enraged weevil landing on him, breaking anything of his, before he threw himself out of the way.

I should really stop doing this, he thought to himself. There wasn't much choice, Gwen and Tosh needed help and Ianto couldn't do it himself. Owen sprayed the weevil with spray as it came through the door, and it did…exactly… nothing.

Other than to make it far more pissed off that it already was. Owen glanced to the back of the huge open room. There was a huge stack of furniture and from inside Owen heard the sounds of snarls and growls. From upstairs he heard a crash as Gwen and Toshiko pulled the barricade apart.

Owen looked at the other weevil in the room, a little smaller, crouched and snarling by the nest. Obviously the female. It growled at him and then her head snapped round. Her threatening sounds deepened as Ianto shuffled into the room. He had his gun ready but also had the spray in the other hand.

"I don't think that's…" Owen said. "Shit!" he shouted, ducking and rolling as the enraged male threw itself again.

It missed Owen and slammed into the wall. The plaster cracked and Owen was sure he felt the house shake slightly under the impact. Dust shifted down from the ceiling onto the weevil. It shook its head and turned slightly. Owen spun and backed into the room.

"Owen!" Ianto shouted in concern. He was very much aware that Owen couldn't risk getting hurt. "Switch!"

Owen glanced at him, immediately realising what Ianto meant. The female was making no attempt to attack. All Owen needed to do was contain her while Ianto attempted to take down the enraged male. He backed up as Ianto moved forward. Normally, such a move would have brought a sickening feeling of bile up into his mouth, at the thought that Ianto was far better to deal with it. However, Owen decided he had matured since his death, besides; he could patch Ianto up if he got injured. No one could do that for him.

Ianto stepped forward, ready with his own spray.

"I don't think that's working on him, you may have to injure him to get him down."

"Him?" Ianto edged forward.

"I'm guessing that's the male."

"Great," Ianto said. He moved forward. The grip on his gun tightened as he inched forward. The male weevil was crouched on the floor, snarling at the two men, the muscles on its shoulders tensed as Ianto moved closer.

"Gwen, Tosh, where are you?" Ianto hissed through gritted teeth.

"The doors stuck!" Tosh yelled in his ear. There was a sudden crash from upstairs. For a moment, Ianto glanced away and the weevil attacked. Ianto tried to use the spray, but as with Owen, the male was too angry to care. It grabbed Ianto's arm and the spray flew across the room. The weevil used his body weight to drive Ianto to the floor and the creature lunged at his throat. There wasn't anything Ianto could do to protect himself. He was getting bitten whatever happened. So, as a last resort, he sacrificed his limbs to protect his throat.

As the weevil lunged, Ianto threw up his arm; agonisingly his right. It would have been better to have used his left but that was pinned by his side. He jammed his forearm into the weevil's mouth and pushed up, trying to keep the enraged beast busy until someone could help him. The weevil's jaws clamped down and he howled in pain. There was no point in bravely trying to pretend otherwise. It bloody hurt.

"Ianto!" Owen shouted. He shot forward and then stopped. The female moved forward with him, getting ready to also attack. Owen turned back to her. He couldn't help Ianto because the female would get him while he was distracted. Ianto's yelps of pain deepened as the weevil shook his head, worrying Ianto's arm. Blood was flowing freely from the wound, spattering the floor, as the weevil pulled his limb about.

"Hurry up, you two!" Owen yelled into his com. There was another crash from upstairs and one a little closer. Owen's eyes widened as Jack burst into the room. He skidded to a shocked halt, almost sliding to the floor as his feet nearly went out from under him. He stared for a moment. Owen heard the girls coming down the stairs, but that only registered in the back of his mind.

Instead, he was focussed on Jack's face; it turned from shock to rage in a split second. For a moment those seconds honed down for Owen. He saw everything that happened in slow motion. Jack's eyes hardened, his jaw set and the underlying violence that seemed to hide deep within him rose to the surface. For a moment his aura washed out into the room, swamping it.

Jack raised his gun, and there wasn't a moment's hesitation as he aimed, sighted and shot.

The loud bang broke the stillness of that moment and a second later Owen jumped as the back of the weevil's head exploded open. Weevil brain went everywhere as Jack caught him at point blank range. He aimed for the back of the skull, trying to protect Ianto from any ricochet, or even just avoiding the risk of missing the weevil and getting him.

Ianto screamed as the splatter went everywhere and the beast dropped down on top of him. He struggled to try and free his arm that was still clamped in its jaws, and trying to move the dead weight to get up.

"Jack!" he shouted. But Jack wasn't listening.

Owen stared at Jack, shocked and utterly disbelieving. Jack would never behave like this. Owen caught his eye and shivered. There was nothing but killer instinct in there. Because of that, Owen took his eyes off the female. With her mate dead, she was the one to defend and she launched herself at Owen.

The bullet passed him; he felt the air ripple as it did so. It took the weevil between the eyes. Jack may have forgotten who he was, but he still knew how to kill. He took out the moving target easily and she landed on the floor with a heavy thump.

"Jack!" Ianto shouted again. He couldn't unlock the weevil's jaws. They had clamped on his arm in death and he couldn't do it. Nor could he get up. He had thought to try and roll the weevil over, but that could have torn his arm to pieces. Jack walked past him, struggling on the floor, to the nest, to the snarling brood.

"Jack!" Gwen roared his name as she ran into the room.

This time he heard. He turned and for a moment looked furious at the people aiming guns at him. Then he looked back at the huddling, whining prey he was stalking, and then he looked to Ianto.

"Ianto!"

"Jack, put the gun down!" Gwen shouted at him again. Jack stopped and stared. Owen had stopped pointing a gun and had gone to kneel at Ianto's side, trying to prise the locked grip of the dead weevil. Jack looked down and then up.

Slowly, very slowly – because he remembered the gesture when Ianto had done it in the warehouse – Jack lowered his gun. He very slowly placed it on the floor and then getting up, moved away from it, stepping towards Ianto still prone on the floor. Owen got the weevil off and pushed. Jack helped with his foot. Putting it on the weevil's back and hoisting it towards him.

"Ianto!" Jack forgot the guns, and the weevils as Ianto cradled his arm to his chest. Owen snapped on gloves and then threw some at Jack.

"Put those on, if you are going to help!"

Jack scrabbled with them, feeing the powdery insides as his skin touched them. He ripped one, trying to get it on his right hand. Owen glared and threw him another. This time Jack struggled to get it on correctly, his hand shaking violently. He wanted to help Ianto; that was all that mattered.

The gloves went on and Owen pressed something to Ianto's arm.

"Hold that on Jack. Press down hard. Keep his arm raised here!"

Owen snapped commands and Jack moved to obey. He held on tight. Looking down at Ianto Jack didn't know if what he was doing was painful. Ianto's face was screwed up, and he blinked, breathing heavily. Jack did as he was told, he pressed down on the wound and held Ianto's arm up, trying to control the bleeding out of the wound.

"Kathy!" Owen roared. A second later she ran into the room. She looked around, seeing the bodies and hearing the whining youngsters that Gwen and Tosh were now trying to contain.

"Oh my God!"

"Yeah, right, later…" Owen yelled at her. "I need an ambulance, with two litres of A positive blood. Get them here, now!"

"They might have better things to do!" Kathy snapped; although she was already reaching for her radio.

"Just do it!" Jack roared. "Now!"

That obviously had some affect. For a moment, Jack sounded really like Jack. And for that second Owen thought Jack had had his memory snapped back. But as Kathy ran out of the room Jack looked at Owen, his eyes pleading desperately.

"He's going to be all right, isn't he?"

"Let's sit him up. Jack help him."

Jack did. Ianto groaned as he was moved. Jack shifted so he could sit behind him, holding him up and still gripping his arm. In the distance there was the sound of sirens. Owen guessed someone down the street had called the ambulance before the police had asked for it. Screams and gunshots on such a respectable street were probably very worthy of attention.

Owen stood up. "You two; keep that contained!" He said to Gwen and Tosh. He went out to meet Kathy and the paramedics.

"It's a bad bite, I think into a vein. Don't look at anything else in the room other than the patient."

"That's good advice," Kathy said, looking very wan under her calm 'I'm in charge pose'. She looked directly at Owen, and then at Jack, holding onto Ianto, keeping the bleeding arm raised and rocking him gently, murmuring in a low tone.

"Please be all right, please be all right."


	12. CleanUp

Ianto took a breath, feeling very wary as he slowly surfaced back to reality. His arm was throbbing painfully. Though not as painfully as his left hand which seemed to be trapped in some death like grip. He opened his eyes and looked at Jack, who was clinging onto him, his eyes red with crying. But he smiled as he saw Ianto's eyes open, and the blue in Jack's eye took sudden prominence.

"Hi," Ianto said.

"Hello. You're all right." Jack's eyes watered again. Ianto would have reached up his other arm, but it was pinned down, with two needles attached to drips jabbed into it.

"Yes, I'm okay," Ianto said drowsily. He looked at the drips and wondered what the devil was in them. Whatever it was, it felt good. But he worried about it. Jack didn't like anything like that, unless it was necessary. That was the purpose of their bi-weekly sleepovers at each other's houses. Because he didn't want Ianto taking too much of anything.

"Jack? What about the… little weevils?"

Jack's face closed a little. "I don't know." Ianto frowned.

"Did they…." Ianto tried to voice his concerns but he stopped. He felt so tired; he could hardly keep his eyes open.

"I thought I told you to call me if he woke up!" Owen snapped. Jack looked round. Owen stood by the door, a very nasty looking item in his hand. It was about the size of a CD, a circular object with two small pincers on it. Whatever it was beeped as Owen held it.

"Come on Jack, out of the way. I don't have much time to do this in public."

"But what's that?" Jack demanded, not moving.

Owen walked up to him, looming over him. He had had enough of Jack today. He had clung onto Ianto making it impossible for the paramedics to do their job; and because Jack refused to be separated from Ianto, Owen had been forced to chase the ambulance in Gwen's car. That left Ianto's delicate care to the paramedics. He probably couldn't dispute the job they would do was good but Owen would have felt much better if he could have had access to Ianto continuously. He had been considering the fact that the male which had bitten Ianto didn't seem quite right. Hence, his actions now.

"Move out of the way now, Jack, or once I'm done, I am taking you back to the hub, locking you in a cell and leaving you there until you get your memory back. And even Ianto won't be able to override the lock, if and when he gets better. I will leave you stuck in there, because of you getting in the way we have more problems than ever to deal with. Now move!"

Jack gazed up in shock. Then the chair scraped back and he scurried out of the way, moving around Owen and going to the far end of the room, hiding in the corner. Owen shook his head and turned his attention to what he needed to do. He put the item near Ianto's arm and the pincers lashed out to lock onto him. Ianto moaned, his eyelids fluttered, but he dozed off again without much hassle.

"What does that do?" Jack asked tentatively, making sure he was well out of the way. Owen glared at him and Jack huddled in the corner.

"It should hopefully be able to tell me if that male passed anything nasty onto him. As soon as I'm sure it's safe to move him we are taking him back to the hub."

Jack nodded eyes wide. He didn't dare say anything. Ianto stirred again and opened his eyes. He blinked a little and looked around. Up at Owen first and then to Jack, still hiding in the corner.

"What's the matter?" Ianto asked him. Jack said nothing; he just looked warily at Owen. Who cleared the matter up, no problem.

"If he gets in my way again I'm locking him in the vaults."

"Owen," Ianto complained. He didn't feel like he had much energy for it. Owen shrugged. "Ow!" Ianto added as the pincers released from his arm. Owen stared at the readings.

"Okay, you don't appear to have picked up anything nasty but I want you at the hub with me, and I want to autopsy that big guy as soon as possible."

"What about the youngsters?"

"Gwen and Tosh got them back to the hub. The police helped them move the corpses and Gwen's gone back to the station to retcon them, just to be on the safe side."

Ianto nodded. It sounded sensible to him. He sat back in the pillows, feeling exhausted. Carefully he tried to lift his damaged arm. There was a thick, white bandage around it.

"We had to stitch some of it, and you lost a bit of blood, quite a bit of blood, but as long as you don't move it around too much it should be fine." Owen sounded slightly accusatory as he spoke. Ianto looked up at him.

"Better that than my throat."

Owen couldn't much argue with that. He'd tried that one himself, and couldn't really recommend it.

"I'll sort out getting you discharged; Gwen should be here soon with the SUV." He turned and walked out, sending Jack a slight glare. Ianto watched Jack frown in confusion. Ianto couldn't really blame him for that. All he had done was react to save Ianto's life. It was in reality very unlikely that they could have controlled the male. What annoyed them, Ianto guessed, was the fact he had just shot the female. One they could have probably subdued, and then they wouldn't have had two orphaned weevils to deal with. And several police to retcon.

Now, Jack stared at Ianto, looking too frightened to come near him. Ianto held out his good hand.

"Come on."

Jack shuffled out from the corner, but he didn't look too keen to go anywhere close to Ianto. Instead he looked nervously at the door, for any sign of Owen.

"Jack, come on, it's all right."

"Owen said he'd lock me in the vault," Jack said. Ianto scowled.

"Did he now? Well, he won't, I won't let him."

"He said you wouldn't be able to unlock it."

Ianto smirked, raising his eyebrows. "Oh yeah, he might like to think that. Don't keep hovering like that, come here."

Jack glanced nervously at the door again and he shuffled to Ianto's right side, sliding between the wall and the bed. He couldn't hold Ianto's hand there, what with the bandage and the drip, so instead he perched at the end of the bed and put his hand on Ianto's leg. Just above his knee. Ianto hoped that he wouldn't attempt to go any higher. He didn't think he was really up to fending Jack off at the moment. However, whether it was Owen's threats, or the look on Ianto's face that did it, Jack did nothing more than sit there. Ianto relaxed back into the bed, he got the feeling he was going to be stuck at the hub overnight so he wanted to take in the feeling of the soft pillows and mattress while he could.

He closed his eyes for a moment. Jack's hand tightened a little. But he didn't say anything. Probably too frightened to, Ianto thought wearily but he felt too tired to bother to reassure him. After a moment Jack's hand stopped clinging to him and instead smoothed the bedcovers down over him, stroking his legs lightly. The gesture was almost innocent. Jack didn't move too far above his knees, but the hint was there. Unfortunately Ianto couldn't think of another way to soothe Jack, so he just let Jack get on with it. But he stopped a few moments later and Ianto slowly opened one eye. Owen stood in the doorway, with Gwen just behind him.

"When you two have quite finished," Owen said.

It told Ianto straight away, just how worried Owen was, when he let Gwen drive. He also made Jack sit in the passenger seat so he could be in the back with Ianto. They had put his arm in a sling, and draped his jacket over his shoulders. His shirt had been ripped to pieces, first by the weevil, and then by Jack, so the paramedics could get to him. And God alone knew where his tie had gone. Ianto didn't argue with any of it. Neither did Jack. Ianto hoped that was just Jack taking the hint from him, rather than the fear of Owen's threat. Ianto wouldn't have really put it past Owen but Ianto wasn't going to let it happen.

Gwen tried to manoeuvre through the Cardiff traffic as carefully as possible on the way back. Owen had dosed him up with painkillers but still it felt like agony every time the SUV slowed down or speeded up. Jack kept turning in the seat, giving him worried glances, and Owen kept his own intense eye on him.

"I'm going to need another shirt," Ianto said, trying to sound calm and remembering that he had nothing at the hub. He had meant to bring something in today, but with everything else going on, he forgot.

"I can go and get you something when I've dropped you off," Gwen said helpfully. Ianto nodded.

"You can take Jack with you," Owen added. Ianto looked at him, so did Jack.

"But I want to stay with Ianto," Jack said.

Owen looked at him. "And I want some peace and quiet to get Ianto settled. Gwen can take you and you can pick out whatever Ianto wants. You know where things are don't you?"

Jack nodded; he had had a good rummage around that morning, while Ianto was trying to get dressed. It had been like having a very large but amenable toddler playing in the room. Every drawer seemed to have required examination and an explanation of whose things were where. The half an hour Jack had done that had been loosely broken up with attempts to persuade Ianto to have sex. Jack also seemed to have retained his inability to take no for an answer.

"Well, there you go. You can make yourself useful and let Ianto get some rest. I get the feeling you are more than a little wearing at the moment," Owen said. Ianto smiled slightly, glancing at Jack. Jack smiled back.

"What should I get?" Jack asked.

"A shirt, and some underwear, and socks," Ianto said. "I don't think I'll need that much."

Owen looked at his watch. "It's four o'clock now, it's at least one overnight stay, maybe another."

"I'll be fine tomorrow. I've only been bitten."

"Yeah, let's hope that's all. I'll tell you what you are doing once I've opened up the weevil and made sure nothing is wrong with him," Owen said. Ianto rolled his eyes and then started to fumble about in his pocket with his good hand.

"Where the hell are my keys?"

"Oh," Jack said. He turned in the seat so he could reach into his pocket and he pulled out Ianto's set of keys and held them up. "They fell out of your pocket in the ambulance. I looked after them."

Jack sounded immensely proud of himself; he smiled at Ianto, who smiled back. He would never admit it in a million years, and certainly never to Owen or Jack, but Owen was right. Ianto was too tired to deal with Jack at the moment. Half and hour or so without him, just a little while, would at least give him chance to relax.

"If you want," Gwen said, picking up his thoughts. "I could look after Jack tonight. I'm sure Rhys won't mind."

"No," Ianto and Jack said at the same time.

"Just bring him back to the hub," Ianto said.

"I want to stay with Ianto," Jack announced over him; loudly.

Gwen frowned, she caught Owen's eye in the rear view mirror. Owen raised his eyebrows at her and shook his head. Her expression moved from a frown to a scowl.

"Like I said, I don't think Rhys will like that much. Plus I'm going to be there, I can do the autopsy tonight. It's not like I need to sleep."

"Why not?" Jack asked.

Owen shook his head. He was not explaining that to Jack. "It doesn't matter."

"But…?"

"Jack! The vaults!"

Jack looked startled and then slowly turned and sank down in the seat, folding his arms across his chest. He slouched slightly and Ianto smirked as he heard Jack mutter to himself, loudly.

"You're mean!"


	13. Curiosity

Much to Gwen's irritation, Jack refused to give her the door keys. Instead Jack fumbled about with them until he put the right key in the right lock, swinging the door open triumphantly when he unlocked it. He headed in first and then paused as Gwen followed.

Gwen slowly closed the door and looked around. She had never been to Ianto's flat before. Obviously she had spent time in Owen's and she had even gone around to Tosh's a few times; when they had needed girly commiseration, for one reason or another. But somehow Ianto was more remote than that. She got the feeling that only Jack had ever really come across the threshold.

As she expected, it was neat and tidy. She glanced at Jack, who waited a moment.

"What did Ianto say that he needed?" Gwen asked. Jack's eyes rolled in his head as he thought.

"A shirt and… underwear… and socks…" Jack recited off the list, ticking the three things off as if they were the most important things in the world.

"Okay, where…?"

"I'll get them!" Jack said brightly. He turned and went up the flight of stairs and disappeared off to the left. Gwen could hear him moving around, quite happily. Instead of following him, she allowed curiosity to get the better of her. She went into the lounge.

Again it was neat and tidy, a few of the cushions on the sofa had been stacked back a little haphazardly but that didn't seem to detract from the room. Most of the surfaces were tidy, but covered in ornaments, some old, some new looking. But she didn't doubt that everything was exactly where it was meant to be.

She glanced back at the stairs. Jack was still rummaging around, so she moved in a little further, her eyes scanning the bookcase that held a varying collection of CD's, books and videos. Some, she would have expected of Ianto but scanning the CD's she spotted a few Glen Miller, which had to be something to do with Jack. She pondered that, wondering if Jack had bought them, or if Ianto had, for Jack.

A particularly loud thud from upstairs brought her back to attention and she felt her face flush in embarrassment, feeling that she had intruded where she shouldn't. Perhaps she had, she thought to herself.

She had never really looked too hard at Jack and Ianto's relationship. In fact, she had used the word 'relationship' very loosely. At work they seemed utterly remote from each other, but maybe that hadn't been much of the case.

From an outside point of view it looked as though Jack was simply indulging his enjoyment of sex with a willing person, and that was all there was to it. You could even be forgiven for thinking, she said to herself, that Ianto wasn't the only current one.

However, the last day, and even the last few months had given her some pause for thought. She knew her feelings for Jack, and what he felt for her and that seemed to have brought up some unspoken jealousy issues for Ianto. But it had never occurred to her that it would happen the other way round, she felt jealous of him.

Over the months when Jack had been gone, they had all been forced to rely on each other a lot more. And it had brought them closer together, they had talked more, been together more; all except one tiny facet. Ianto still managed to keep something back. Gwen couldn't really hone it down to what it actually was.

Tosh, and even Owen, had been very careful around him through that time. He had seemed quiet, in fact he hid his feelings more than the rest of them. Owen had ranted, Toshiko had cried a little, and Gwen had forced her confused feelings into keeping the four of them together. But still, Ianto had kept something back; something that she presumed would always be exclusively Jack's.

None of them had made much of an issue of that; especially on his return - other than to notice that Ianto had seemed very keen to fall back into bed with him. But everything had settled back to normal; almost.

She went out of the lounge and further back into the flat, into the kitchen. Again it was neat and tidy, except the breakfast pots still sat on the draining board. She crossed the room and opened a door to her right, onto a small utility room. The washer was tucked away in there and a rail, attached to the far wall held some clothes, Ianto's and Jack's.

Gwen quickly shut the door and went back through the hallway.

"Gwen!" Jack shouted loudly. She moved swiftly, only making noise when she started to walk up the stairs. As she did so, she tried to work it out in her mind. Jack was the least domesticated person she knew. Now she really knew why, he let Ianto do it for him. Maybe the novelty of it was in someone else doing it.

That worked along with the other thoughts in her mind. Jack didn't remember who he was, but he seemed to still retain something of his personality, all the traits that still somehow seemed to make him Jack. But if they were still getting Jack, then they were seeing parts of him that were often covered. One of them, his obvious connection to Ianto, a clearly deeper one than any of them could have imagined, least of all her.

She followed him upstairs, heading in the same direction, to the left; into Ianto's bedroom.

"Are you all right, Jack?"

He was stood by the open wardrobe. "Where were you?"

Again, she felt the dull flush on her face. She opened her eyes wider; in a gesture she knew she could use to feign innocence, and gave him a smile.

"Waiting downstairs."

"Oh." Jack seemed to take that on face value. Instead he rummaged again in the cupboard, pulling out an array of shirts in various colours and looking at them carefully before putting them back. Then he looked at Gwen. "Which one do you think he wants?"

Gwen shrugged, peering into the wardrobe at the long line of shirts, then suits, that were in there. She couldn't fail to see the little section at the end, of Jack's clothes.

"I don't think it matters," she eventually said.

Jack scowled as he pulled out a light blue shirt, then a white one with thin, dark blue stripes, then a burgundy one. He shuffled them round in his hands, trying to work out which colour would be best. Then he gazed as Gwen again.

"We could take all three and Ianto could pick."

"I don't think he'll care, Jack," Gwen snapped. Jack's eyes widened as he looked at her, and he seemed to shrink a little, as if he was trying to avoid someone else who could possibly get angry at him. It was something he didn't seem to want to confront, in any of them. He looked into the wardrobe again, a frown on his face as he tried to work out what to do. Gwen sighed.

"Okay, is there a bag we can pack them in?" she asked, feeling a little contrite. Jack brightened, and then frowned.

"Won't they get creased?"

"Not if we're careful, let's see." She peered back into the wardrobe, looking down at the bottom and she spotted a small sports bag, tucked away at one side. Folded and flattened in Ianto's usual neat style. "That'll do."

She reached down and pulled it out. She put her hand in and opened it out a little to allow some space for the shirts. Then she looked up at Jack, who was still holding the shirts, which were hanging off their hangers.

"Shall I do it? I'm good at folding," she offered.

"What if they get squashed?"

"They'll be fine in this bag; we're not putting anything heavy on them. We need underwear as well."

Jack smiled and handed her the shirts. She laid them out on the bed and slid the first one off its hanger. As she started to fold it up carefully she watched Jack, who was now rummaging in one of the drawers of the plastic containers. He seemed to know where he was going as he opened a drawer and started to pull things out of it. Gwen raised her eyebrows. For a very conservative dresser on the outside Ianto had a very interesting colour, and novelty, range in his underwear. Jack looked through them, obviously again looking for a pair that he thought Ianto would like.

For a moment Gwen thought that she was going to have to stop Jack from bringing the entire contents of the drawer so Ianto could pick for himself. However, he held up a pair of boxer shorts in a slightly silky, jersey material. They were white with bright red hearts printed on them.

"I like them," Jack announced.

Gwen, not for one second, was getting involved in a discussion about the merits of Ianto's underwear.

"Okay, and socks?"

Ianto's sock drawer, she thanked God, did not have the same appeal. They were mainly black, so Jack just picked a pair of them out. It made her wonder actually. The shirts seemed to have worried him, the choice of underwear he seemed to take delight in, and the socks were just practical.

Jack handed everything to her to pack, which she did so carefully. Then she took the hangers and put them back in the wardrobe. Jack shut the drawers with the same care, so again the room was tidy. Gwen frowned.

"Do you think he'll want us to bring some toiletries?" she mused.

"What?" Jack asked.

"Deodorant and things from the bathroom, we can go and look."

She turned to do so, but Jack was quicker. He was past her, with the bag of clothes and on the landing, he stopped dead by the bathroom door.

"No! He only wanted a shirt, underwear and socks!"

Gwen frowned, she looked at Jack. His face was knotted up into a confused frown as if he couldn't understand her thinking past the basic instruction. Jack possibly couldn't, she assumed, considering some of his recent behaviour.

"He might not have thought of it, but he might still appreciate it." She smiled at Jack, trying to be reassuring; in the hope of calming whatever had brought on the panic. However, all Jack did was scowl down at her and continue to block the door.

"He didn't ask for any of that!" Jack reiterated what he had said. Gwen frowned as she looked at him. His eyes were darkening with each passing second but she could see the uncertainty in them.

Jack was in fact suffering a total quandary. So much so, he didn't know if he was right or wrong. He only had his most recent experiences to tell him so and the two most prominent things in his mind were the five brown bottles in the bathroom cabinet and Owen's advice not to tell Ianto that Jack had blurted out that they were there.

Now, Jack had already told one person. Unsure at the time if he should, but he had done so because the night before had scared him. Ianto's frightening behaviour and attitude the next morning had bothered him further.

But he wasn't sure if he wanted someone else knowing. He didn't know if Owen had told her, or if even Ianto had said anything to her. Jack didn't know if he himself knew anything about it. All he could interpret was that he didn't want to be a willing participant in someone else finding out.

Gwen might see nothing wrong with it. But since Jack had been concerned, without knowing why, he didn't want somebody who could possibly understand it seeing it. Looking at Ianto's things in his own bathroom.

Jack could see the shock in her face, and the slight nerves as she looked at him, but he knew he couldn't back down.

She did, in fact, feel nervous. Jack had gravitated from almost babyish behaviour to the frightening instinct of his own underlying personality. At that moment in time, as she saw the darkening emotion in his eyes, she was glad that he no longer had the gun on him. He had dropped it on the floor after the altercation with the weevils and she had retrieved it, and not returned it. In fact she planned to lock it away safely until Jack was back to being able to knowledgeably manage it.

That didn't change the fact; he was bigger than her, and probably far more dangerous. For the moment, she allowed her discretion to take precedence, rather than her curiosity. She summoned up a smile and she nodded gently.

"Okay, it doesn't matter, come on then."

She turned on her heel and walked down the stairs. Jack paused, watching her. One hand gripped the handle of the bag he was holding, the other he wiped down his coat, to remove the clammy layer of sweat from his palm. The tension in him dissipated but he still worried that he had somehow made everything worse. He wasn't entirely sure why he hadn't wanted her looking.

There had just been something in her manner, and her insistence that had struck a chord in him. That it wasn't just concern and consideration driving her. It was not a casual idea, but more a level of curiosity, that she had wanted to look. Because there was something that she had wanted to see.

As she paused in the hallway Jack slowly started to walk down the stairs. He tried to smile but he didn't think he made a very good job of it. She only returned it fleetingly, instead concentrating on getting the keys to the SUV out of her bag as she stepped out of the door.

"Well, let's get you back to Ianto then."


	14. Psychology

The only vaguely comfortable place in the hub was Jack's own little area, under the office. But there was no way that Ianto could even hope to reach it, the state he was in. Instead Owen had left him sat on the sofa in the main area of the hub, which still didn't seem very comfortable. Ianto didn't want to lie down, his arm felt better strapped in a sling and raised. So he tried to sit up while he waited for Owen and Tosh to set up two chairs in Jack's office.

The simple plan was to use Jack's office chair, that was comfortable enough and Owen thought to bring one up from the conference room for him to rest his feet on. It wasn't ideal, not by a long shot but Ianto wasn't going to argue with anyone, he felt so zoned out from painkillers that he wouldn't have cared if they had let him lay down in the morgue.

Owen had gone down into Jack's space to gather up some cushions, and a blanket for him, until Jack and Gwen returned with a change of clothes for him. It would hopefully make it even more comfortable.

"Are you all right?" Owen asked. "Is that comfortable?" He moved the pillow behind Ianto's back to a better position. At least he thought it was a better position.

"Owen, I can hardly feel a thing," Ianto said drowsily. He could hardly keep his eyes open and his head kept dropping down onto his chest as his eyes drooped.

"They're industrial strength painkillers, trust me, you'll be fine for a while. You are probably best off trying to get some sleep." Owen looked up and glanced at Tosh, he nodded his head and she retreated a little, taking the hint that Ianto was best off without too much fussing. She went over to her computer and started to type. There were a few things she wanted to follow up. She might need to take some more energy reading off Jack, she thought, when he got back.

"I'll try and stay awake until Jack gets back."

"Don't worry about him, we are quite capable of looking after him," Owen said, straightening the pillow under Ianto's feet.

"I know, but…" he stopped talking and opened his eyes properly to look at Owen. Owen crouched down, reaching up to the sling.

"I'm just going to loosen this a little."

"But he does seem a little nervous around the rest of you."

Owen glanced up, "you noticed that, huh?"

"Well, you shouted at him, Tosh seems frightened of him and I don't think Gwen knows quite what to do," Ianto said. "He trusts me."

"That could simply be because you were the first person he saw. It may just have imprinted since you had to persuade him everything was all right."

"I suppose."

"Don't worry about him too much. I don't think he's really going to get into that much trouble now. If nothing else, we can keep him down here and just watch him in shifts. I'm here, you're here, and he'll be fine."

"Okay," Ianto said. "Just… could you please stop threatening to put him in the vaults? Please?"

"Who says it's a threat?" Owen muttered concentrating on the knot on the sling. He glanced up at Ianto again and rolled his eyes and sighed. "Okay, fine, I'll stop threatening him with the vaults." Owen paused, keeping his gaze on Ianto. "If you tell me exactly what is in the pill bottles in your bathroom cabinet."

It really wasn't fair to pull that out of the bag while Ianto was in such a state, and Owen saw his eyes widen in shock. The comment brought him out of his dozing mood a little. He shifted uncomfortably in the chair. Owen loosened the sling and guided Ianto's arm down a little. With the painkillers and his other sudden preoccupation he hardly noticed the move.

"How did…?" Then he stopped. Owen gave a slight grimace.

"Jack mentioned it this morning. At least he asked me if I knew you had nightmares and the conversation kind of went on from there."

Ianto took a sharp breath. Thinking back, Jack had been on his own in the bathroom. Ianto had simply left him too it, hardly considering that Jack might look around, and then that night….

"Oh God," Ianto said.

"No, just me, I don't think Jack talks to God much."

Ianto said nothing, he just gaped at him. With the painkillers in his system his eyes had dilated. It just added to his expression of shock.

"I don't think you can really blame him," Owen said, to try and fill the silence. "I think he was worried, especially after the nightmare."

"I know he was. It was my fault I forgot to take…"

Owen stopped fiddling, finally happy with the set of the sling. It kept the arm elevated but not quite as tightly bound as it was before. Owen decided he would look at it tomorrow, after Ianto had got some rest. And he wouldn't do that until Jack was back. So while they waited, Owen could at least make use of the time. He lent on the side of the chair and looked up at Ianto.

"So the others…?" he prompted. Ianto looked away, his jaw tensed slightly and Owen saw his eyes darken. "Ianto…" he prompted again.

"All right!" He raised his left hand to cut Owen off. Owen stilled down and waited. "It was just…"

"How often do you take them?" Owen asked.

Ianto glared at him. "The nights I'm not with Jack, okay!"

Owen nodded. "He said when he cuddled you, you calmed down. Okay," Owen said. He paused to think about it. Ianto said nothing; the tension came off him in waves. This was the last thing that he wanted anyone to know.

"And Jack would never have normally told me, not in a million years."

"I asked him not to," Ianto said flatly.

"Did he want to?" Owen asked. Ianto paused and frowned. He shifted in the seat again, wincing as that moved his arm and a dull throb shot up to his shoulder. All he wanted to do now was curl up, and try and forget everything. He had never wanted anyone knowing this. He had tried to hide it from Jack for God's sake.

"I don't think I ever gave him the option."

Owen nodded. And now Jack, without his memory, some of his personality and one hell of a scare to boost him along, had done. The cat was well and truly out of the bag and nothing could hide it away now. Not that Owen would tell anyone else, but at least now, he had some inkling of what he was really dealing with.

"So instead, you stay here, he goes and sees you and we are all left to think that it's just sex."

"That kind of helped it along."

Owen gazed at him very steadily. "So, you mean under all that sexual innuendo and silly remarking, Jack was, in fact, hiding your very severe psychological problem."

When it was put like that Ianto didn't have much room for argument. He felt his eyes start to water. He widened them a little, trying not to blink, so everything stayed where it was. Owen sat there and waited.

"Yes." Ianto's voice was slightly strangled, trying to control his tears.

"When in fact you could have just told me; I am your doctor."

"How the hell could I do that? Part of the problem tried to kill you!" Ianto put his head down into his one unbound hand. Owen sighed and reached out to grip Ianto's good forearm. It was hard enough for him to try and comfort someone, without worrying about hurting them. He was never very good at this kind of thing. He always seemed to sound so false, and the more he tried to force it, the worse he sounded. All he could do now was be practical.

"Well, she didn't, someone else did."

Ianto's breath hitched, telling Owen, the fear was now way much deeper because of Lisa's attempt to take over Torchwood.

"What about when Jack was gone?"

Ianto took a breath, "that's where the other stuff came from. I didn't want to…"

"Where did you get it from?"

"This is Torchwood, we have connections."

"And you could have no idea what you are taking, and if you mix it with something… Jesus Ianto! You have no idea what you could have done to yourself."

"I'm fine. I was careful. Some weren't as strong as the others, I could take them when I was really exhausted, it didn't need the… extreme measures."

Owen sat back, plonking his backside on the floor, trying to look a little less threatening. He crossed his legs and waited until Ianto looked up. He took a deep breath.

"I promise you, I will not get angry at the answer to this question because I think I might know it. Did you get hold of anything that was stronger than what I prescribed you?"

"Yes," Ianto said quickly. There was no way round it. Owen would find out. He watched Owen warily but all he did was nod, looking down, taking in another involuntary breath that he didn't really need to bother with. But his body did it on occasion. Usually an occasion like this. When Owen looked up, his face was utterly calm.

"Okay, I know Jack got you something, because he said it had the Torchwood label on."

"Those were the same as yours, he wouldn't do anything else. That just hid how regularly I was taking them."

Owen gave another slow careful nod, and thought before he spoke again. Just to make sure he was tactful, but forceful enough to get the resolution that he wanted.

"When I let you go home, you are going to get those five bottles together and when you come back to the hub, you are going to bring them with you and give them to me. Then I will re-prescribe something for you, for the nights when Jack isn't there. Which is how many a week?"

"Three. Two I'm here and two Jack comes to me, late night…or day, depending on what we are doing."

"And your little weevil hunting sessions?"

"A bit of everything."

Owen sighed. He was making the most of his ability to whoosh air though himself this evening, he thought.

"You should have just told me. Especially when Jack disappeared. What did you think I was going to say, I mean… did they start after Canary Wharf?"

Ianto shook his head, "I've always kind of had them, ever since…" he paused and looked away, looking out at Toshiko who was concentrating on her computer rather than the intense conversation she knew was going on close to her.

"I've had nightmares since I was young, bad ones, but yes they got worse after The Battle of Canary Wharf and they're almost constant after Lisa."

Owen saw Ianto relax heavily after he said that sentence. It wondered it was guilt. Just plain and simple guilt that wouldn't allow him to rest, or if it was way deeper than that. If he had really had consistent nightmares from childhood that spoke of being a foundation, to what Ianto thought was the problem.

"And how does Jack stop it?"

Ianto shook his head. "He shouldn't really, but he does. If I'm with him, then I don't think about it. It can't seem to get through."

Jack would probably love that, Owen thought savagely to himself. It wasn't fair, and certainly not a fair assessment as to how Jack viewed the situation, but being the one thing that held a nightmare back, Jack would, on some level love that. Which was probably why he had allowed Ianto to dictate the terms on it. Despite everything, sometime Jack's ego could really let him down.

"Okay, that's fine, but I need to know this. You should have told me, especially when he went AWOL, you should have told me." Owen paused. "You could have told me."

"I know," Ianto said. He rested his head in his good hand.

There was nothing more to say. Embarrassment was the only thing that had stopped him saying anything, to Owen of all people. He could have torn it apart, but he wouldn't have. He wouldn't have said anything, because above and beyond his desire to torture people in happy relationships, he would have seen how he needed to help.

For a moment they looked at each other. Then the sirens started to wail, heralding the return of Jack and Gwen.


	15. Explanations

Ianto sat up a little straighter watching through the glass of the office partition as Jack bounded up the steps across the hub and into the office to find him. It was as if he knew by instinct exactly where Ianto was. He stopped in the office door and his smile faded as he looked at Ianto.

"You look awful," Jack said.

"Thanks," Ianto replied, rather wryly. Although he knew how bad he looked, he had caught sight of himself in the mirror in the toilet. He was pale, almost green in the harsh lighting of the bathroom with dark shadows under his eyes. Most definitely, he was not at his best.

Jack's head tilted slightly, regarding him with sympathy. Then he seemed to snap out of the brief contemplation and came further into the room, a little more sedately than he had been behaving previously, in consideration of Ianto's state. It wasn't lost on either Ianto or Owen.

"I got shirts. I didn't know which one you wanted. You've got so many." Jack frowned as he thought about it.

"It doesn't matter, any of them would have done," Ianto said.

"I told him that," Gwen said as she appeared in the doorway. "At least he only brought three."

Jack started to carefully unpack the bag. "And I got socks and underwear!"

With that he pulled them both out of the bag with a flourish. Gwen rolled her eyes, Toshiko, who had just walked into the room, gaped, and Owen gave a smirk.

"Very tasteful," he commented looking at Jack's choice of underwear. Jack frowned and looked at them as he held them up in the air. Ianto said nothing; he was too tired to comment. Plus he didn't see much wrong with them.

"What's wrong with them?" Jack asked. He pulled on the waistband so he could look at them properly.

"Nothing," Toshiko said. "They're very nice."

Jack grinned and looked around the room. "I like them."

"So you should," Ianto said. "You bought them for me."

"Did I?" Jack asked. Ianto nodded, giving a slight smile. Jack looked delighted, putting the shorts against himself, so he could measure them up. Owen put his head down, his shoulders shaking as he tried not to laugh. Toshiko looked amazed at Jack's behaviour. Gwen looked at Ianto.

"Am I to presume that Jack's responsible for a large proportion of your eclectic collection?"

Ianto grinned. "Yeah, he does rather like to find occasions to buy things like that."

Jack looked up, listening to the conversation. He didn't say anything, nor did he show the slightest sign of embarrassment about what they were saying. Owen, finally getting hold of his laughing fit, looked up at Jack and the now infamous underwear.

"What occasion did he buy you those for? Valentines Day?" he asked grinning. Ianto raised one eyebrow and smirked.

"Yes, as a matter of fact."

"Aww, that's sweet," Toshiko said, meaning it. Owen laughed again; Gwen pressed her lips together to impose some control over herself. Jack, looking quite happy as he folded the underwear up, placing it on the desk, was completely oblivious.

With Jack as he was now, the whole thing didn't really matter to him. He couldn't remember it. But Ianto got the feeling, that when, and he stressed that word in his mind, when Jack got his memory back he was going to be wound up something rotten. By all of them but most especially Owen.

"I was going to bring some toiletries but I couldn't get into the bathroom."

"Why not?" Ianto asked. Gwen waved a hand at Jack.

"He wouldn't let me."

"Ianto didn't ask for anything from in there," Jack said stubbornly, his face tensing slightly. Owen and Ianto shared a look. Both of them came to the same conclusion simultaneously. Jack was again protecting him. Owen said nothing but as he tilted his head, Ianto took the hint. He deflected Jack away from the subject.

"So, which shirts did you get me?"

Ianto watched as Jack delightedly got out the three he had chosen. He felt surprised but also wasn't at the same time. Jack had instinctively picked out two colours he personally liked, one shirt that had sentimental value for Ianto as it was a Christmas present from Lisa.

"Thanks." Ianto smiled but didn't comment on the choice. Jack smiled back, looking down at the shirts, again critically assessing his choice before looking at Ianto again.

"Which one do you want?"

Ianto debated that, he actually felt comfortable as he was. Owen had pulled the blanket around him slightly, and he felt fine like that. In fact he didn't really want to go through the hassle of moving. Sending Jack with Gwen to get some clothes was more a need for Owen to have Ianto to himself than him actually needing anything.

"If you're comfortable I don't think you should bother moving all that much," Owen said. Then he turned to Jack. "Why don't you go and put them down in the wardrobe." He indicated to the hole in the floor. Jack looked at it with a frown.

"They won't get creased then," Gwen added helpfully. Jack shrugged and looked at Ianto.

"Go on then." Again, Ianto had the effect on Jack. He smiled brightly, gathered everything up and happily disappeared off down into his bedroom, to do as he was told. Above him no one dared look at each other for fear of hysterical laughter. Toshiko looked intently at the scanner in her hand.

"I want to take some more readings off him. There's something odd about the energy movement in his brain."

"Uh-huh," Owen said in mild agreement. Ianto felt an overwhelming urge to smack him round the head. But it was too much effort to reach his left hand across to do so.

"Is he all right, isn't he?"

Toshiko nodded, "the energy looks harmless, is harmless. There is no degenerative effect. It's just there; doing something and there seems to be a high concentration of it in his brain. I just want to confirm the scan."

Ianto stared at her hard, wondering if they were hiding something from him. It suddenly came to him that it wasn't highly inconceivable. He would be the main one to worry, and more than likely Jack would pick that up. However, logic followed that up with the simple fact they wouldn't mention it to him, if there was any risk.

"Are you sure? That it's all right?" Ianto said. Toshiko looked up and nodded.

"Yeah, it's fine, I just need to look at all the angles and a follow up scan will help."

"And while we're doing that, you can get some rest," Owen said.

"Doing what?" Jack asked clambering back up. Not only had he hung the shirts up but he had taken his coat off, and must have left it down in the little cabin.

"Scanning your tiny mind, again and Ianto can get some rest."

Jack pouted a little, Owen rolled his eyes, but Ianto, who had a closer view of it, knew the irritation was a little bit forced.

"Don't worry, you can stay with him."

"I'm going to," Jack replied stubbornly.

And stay he did. Ianto dozed in the chair drifting off to sleep as the painkillers did their work. Then slowly, as he rose out of his doze, coming fully awake, he noticed there was something heavy lying against his left leg. Not pressing down hard, but enough for him to notice as he floated between deep sleep and wakefulness.

Very slowly he opened his eyes and looked down. Jack was sat on the floor close to the chair. He was resting against the side, his shoulder on Ianto's leg, and his arm was wrapped around his left thigh, holding onto him lightly. As he saw Ianto's eyes open he smiled.

"You can not be comfortable down there," Ianto said.

Jack rested his head against Ianto's thigh.

"I'm all right, I'm sat on a cushion."

"Why didn't you just use a chair?"

Jack's arm increased its grip and he huddled closer rubbing his cheek against Ianto's leg.

"I didn't want to."

There was probably no arguing with Jack on this. If he couldn't have sex he was taking whatever physical contact he could. Plus the last time Ianto had gone to sleep he had needed physical contact to comfort him. That was probably what Jack was doing now.

"How was the scan?"

"I have glowy energy in my brain," Jack said.

"What?"

"Tosh had a picture on the screen, of my brain, it was all white and glowy."

As well as being quite certain that glowy was not actually a proper word, Ianto felt a little alarmed by that description. It was probably the best he was going to get out of Jack though. He looked up and saw Toshiko working at her computer.

"Tosh!"

At the sound of his voice she spun on her chair and walked swiftly to the office.

"Are you all right?" Her head tilted as she looked at Jack on the floor. She smiled slightly, obviously thinking he was definitely cute in his clingy mode.

"Yeah, I'm fine. What's this about glowy energy in his brain?"

"Oh," Toshiko brightened, as she did when she could talk technical. "I honed the scan down a little. It seemed a little fuzzy the first time and I found this… hang on."

She held her hand up for pause and then disappeared out of the office to her desk, disappearing down into the autopsy room for a moment. She returned a second later, saying something to Owen over her shoulder, carrying her lap top. Ianto watched her walk back into the room and opened it out, turning the screen to him. Then she plugged in the small scanning device that she had been carrying, linking the two together.

The screen flickered and came up with an image that was obviously Jack's brain. Dominating one area was a huge cluster of white, rather glowy, energy.

"Here," she used a pen to point to it. "I couldn't spot it at first, it's the same stuff that's running through his body, and I couldn't get the significance of the concentration in the brain until I made it more specific to the frequency."

"OK, makes sense," Ianto said.

"And this part of the brain, as Owen pointed out to me, is the subconscious. The area that houses every memory, experience that someone goes through. Jack's appears to be significantly larger than normal, but then again he's had more experience than anyone else."

Ianto glanced down at Jack. He was listening to Toshiko again, with wide eyes. He had obviously been around for the previous explanation, and judging by the look on his face he understood the logic of it. Jack's eyes moved as he realised Ianto was looking at him, and he smiled.

"See, glowy energy in my brain," Jack said to clarify.

Ianto smiled; unconsciously he ran his fingers through Jack's hair. It was a gesture that he was very familiar with doing, although he wouldn't have ever dreamed of doing it in front of anyone until today. Toshiko hardly seemed to notice, she was so involved with the computer.

"Right," she agreed with Jack. "It has to be what is blocking his memory, the way its clustered there just makes it the most obvious conclusion. I'm running a programme to try and find its frequency, looking at some way we can try and disperse it. Although I'm not quite sure what we can adapt to use on it. Owen was talking about the singularity scalpel."

"Oh no!" Ianto said. "We are not using that thing on Jack's brain. Owen's liable to turn it to mush!"

"It's worked on Martha and Gwen," Tosh said, not sounding very convinced of the idea either.

"I don't want a mushy brain," Jack said, slightly offended. Ianto's hand moved deeper into Jack's hair.

"You won't have one. We'll think of something else. At least we're sure he's not in any physical danger?"

"Positive, thinking on it, he's not likely to be, but I've scanned us as well and we aren't affected by it. We don't even seem to be picking it up residually, it's concentrated on Jack. And Owen was saying using the scalpel might work anyway once we've tested it, since…."

Toshiko stopped as Ianto gave her a very hard stare, as a very strong indication that she wasn't to finish that sentence. So far Jack hadn't been in a situation that brought his immortality to light. And Ianto was convinced that if Jack hadn't known his name when he came to after the incident with the white light, he didn't know that fact. No one had thought to enlighten Jack, and after the last few hours Ianto was quite sure Jack would spend some time testing the theory if he knew.

"Anyway, we're working on it. Once we have an idea we can think of a way to test it."

"Would it hurt to have a mushy brain?" Jack asked. His focus was still on the brain scan, watching the energy moving inside him. He brought up a hand to feel his scalp. Ianto moved his hand to meet Jack's taking it away from his head.

"You're not going to have a mushy brain, so don't worry about it."

Jack smiled and tightened his grip on Ianto's hand so he couldn't pull away. Jack put his head back down on Ianto's leg, holding his hand at the same time. Tosh's face again pulled an 'aww cute' expression. Then she pulled herself together.

"Anyway, that's as far as we've got."

"What's Owen doing?" Ianto asked.

"Autopsy. He's looking at the male first, but he wants to look at the female as well. First chance he's had to really examine on in detail. I don't think he wants to miss the opportunity."

It was the perfect time. Jack wasn't about to interrupt him. And knowing a bit more about weevils, one of their common problems, was probably a good idea. Ianto nodded.

"Do you need anything? Coffee, food…?" she asked. Ianto shook his head.

"No, I'm still a bit tired." Ianto did feel tired; looking at the screen had made his eyes hurt a little. Closing them again, just for a while, would probably be better than anything else he could do.

"Okay, let us know if you need anything, or send Jack if you don't want to shout."

Ianto mumbled something along the lines of an agreement as he closed his eyes again. He heard Toshiko tidy up and felt Jack shift against him, as he watched what Toshiko did. Ianto heard the sounds of her feet walk out of the office and then there was a low murmur of voices. The acoustics of the autopsy room meant he knew they were talking, but not what they said.

Toshiko hadn't said anything alarming, and they at least had some kind of explanation for Jack's condition. Fixing it was going to be another matter. As he drifted back off to sleep he decided his best plan was to try and access some of the secure files. Jack could possibly know what had happened, but at the moment he couldn't tell anyone. Ianto could access enough to see what they could do.

After that he decided, as Jack's grip on his hand tightened then loosened, as he realised Ianto was going to sleep, that they weren't doing anything to Jack unless it was completely safe.

There was no guarantee his immortality still worked; and Ianto would rather have Jack as he was now, rather than damaged beyond repair.


	16. Early Morning

Jack had sat there again. Staying with Ianto as he slept. But soon, sitting as he was, even with the cushion, was starting to get a little painful. He moved slowly, carefully taking his hand out from Ianto's. It was released easily. Ianto had completely relaxed as he slept. Jack noticed it was entirely different from the previous night.

Very slowly he got up and moved around. He was aching a little from being sat in the same position for so long. Ianto stirred slightly but stayed sleeping. Jack watched him carefully but he didn't show any signs of distress. Jack knelt back down to make sure.

Ianto's eyes were still closed and he snored softly, his breathing steady. He wasn't going to have a nightmare. Jack was sure of that. He wasn't quite sure, why he was sure, but he knew Ianto was fine. Until the morning, when he would wake up, and he'd be all right, Jack said to himself, looking at the wrapped up arm.

Jack turned his head to look out into the hub. It was quiet. He knew Gwen and Toshiko had gone home, but he wasn't sure about Owen. But for now, no one was in sight. Jack turned back to Ianto with a slightly mischievous glitter in his eye. He leant up and pressed his lips to Ianto's cheek, planting a light kiss on his cheekbone.

In response Ianto stirred slightly giving a little murmur of contentment, but he didn't wake up. Jack gave a slightly wicked grin and kissed him again, this time a little closer to Ianto's mouth. Ianto's head inclined in his direction in response. He shifted in the chair, but still stayed asleep.

Then Jack hesitated. He was very tempted to try again, to see if he could steal a kiss of Ianto's lips. But he didn't want to wake him while he was so peacefully asleep. Plus if he woke up he might be angry. Jack sat back on his heels and looked at him. Then glanced back out into the hub. It was still quiet, the lights dimmed, all except the ones in the autopsy room.

The light was bright coming from there, giving the archway a harsh glow and darkening the area around it, casting shadows across the rest of the large room. Jack shivered slightly; Ianto had told him that he lived here. He had his own little space to prove that. He wondered if he liked it, was he the sort of person who liked being alone? At the moment he didn't think so, he was scared to be alone at the moment, while he didn't understand anything around him.

He looked back at Ianto and gently touched his leg.

"I won't be long," he said in a whisper before slowly clambering to his feet. He turned and walked out of the office; glancing back to make sure Ianto was okay. He slept on peacefully. Jack trotted off to the autopsy room.

Owen, to Jack's relief, was there and busy working. He had just started the autopsy of the female weevil, opening up the chest cavity and cutting down to the navel. The first thing he wanted to do was confirm his suspicions that this was actually the female. He could have just done a DNA blood sample, but the old fashioned way was sometimes more fun. Besides it was something to do, in the early hours of the morning.

It reminded Owen of the Bon Jovi song. Never mind, sleeping when he was dead, Owen was catching up on his backlog of work and research. It had amazed him how much else you could get done when you didn't need to sleep. There was so much he could do that he had even started to take work from the others, particularly Tosh.

She had looked worried at the start, but now she spent even more time with him because of it. That was something for Owen to worry about, thinking she shouldn't be spending that much time with a dead man.

He looked up as Jack appeared, pausing what he was doing.

"Is Ianto all right?"

Jack glanced back and nodded, "he's still asleep."

"Best thing for him." Owen went back to what he was doing. He wasn't about to comment on the fact that he had also slipped a sedative in with the painkiller for good measure. Ianto looked like he needed it, and Owen knew at least what was in it. Now he knew how often Ianto needed them he could just up the prescription, but he was thinking that perhaps there could be something else they could try.

Jack lingered in the doorway, and then slowly stepped into the room, moving along the observation area. He paused and leant on the railings looking at the opened corpse.

"What are you doing?" Jack asked.

"Autopsy, well, more an examination. We know what she died of," Owen said. Jack bit his lip, but Owen hadn't looked up as he spoke and he didn't sound the least bit accusatory, but instead practical, just stating the facts.

Bizarrely enough, and since Owen was capable of working and talking at the same time, it was the best time for anyone to ask him anything. With half his mind on what he was doing, while the other half registered the conversation, he was less likely to be sarcastic and acidic to whoever he was talking to.

"Why?" Jack asked. He moved slowly, sitting down and dangling his legs over the edge of the balcony. There was a low rhythmic thump as he kicked his legs, slamming his heels against the tiles. Owen stopped what he was doing, hunched over the body and looked up at Jack with a very steady gaze. Jack frowned, and then as Owen's eyes dropped slightly, the kicking slowed and Jack stopped. Owen put his head back down, with a slight shake.

"Why what?" Owen asked. Jack rested his arms on the lower rail and put his chin in his hands. His legs swung a little but he made sure he didn't bang against the tiles, taking the hint that if he wanted to stay he was to minimize his irritating behaviour. Basically sit still and don't touch anything. Owen had managed to drill that into him.

"Why… you know… examine it?"

"Because that's what we do, because it's interesting. We've dealt with hundreds of these weevils and we still don't know that much about them. They are hard to kill, hard to catch. We've never encountered many dead ones, and I've got two for comparison now. Without much body damage."

Jack listened intently. Owen glanced up at him, meeting Jack's wide-eyed gaze. There was no real way to guess how much he really understood, or how he was processing the information, or whether or not, with that energy cloud in his mind, would he retain it. That was a significant worry, if they couldn't work out a way to disperse it. Did he now literally have a memory like a goldfish, and if so, would he stay like this, swinging from childlike innocence to psychotic defensive behaviour for the rest of his life.

"Jack?" Owen asked, as he lifted out what he assumed was the weevil equivalent of a liver.

"Uh-huh," Jack answered, and then he frowned. "Eeeww, that's gross!"

"Quite possibly," Owen said, weighing the liver carefully. "Do you remember everything that's happened over the last day, since you lost your memory?"

Jack frowned. "Yeah," he said slowly, drawing out the word as he thought back. "There was the warehouse, and Ianto was there…" he paused, mulling over the information in his mind. "And then we got in the car to come here. And Ianto didn't shout at me when I touched his leg, he just said 'not now'"

Owen rolled his eyes up, Jack watched him. One heel slammed hard against the wall and Jack jumped, stilling his leg. Owen hadn't noticed, he was too busy recording the data on the weevil.

"Ianto would say that, besides he's not one for shouting anyway. If he goes quiet you know he's cross."

Jack nodded, deciding to remember that carefully. He didn't want Ianto cross with him. Thinking on that he leant back a little, straining upwards trying to see if Ianto was all right.

"Leave him alone Jack, he's fine," Owen said seeing the movement out of the corner of his eye. Jack stopped straining and settled back down again. He leant over the bottom rail again; peering down at what Owen was doing, resting his arms on the metal bar. His nose wrinkled as he looked down into the chest cavity of the weevil.

"That looks icky," he told Owen. Owen glanced up but didn't comment. Jack swung his legs a little and watched Owen carefully.

"Owen?"

"What?" Owen said, in that distracted tone he always used when he was working.

"Am I clever?"

"I don't know, are you?"

"I don't mean now!" Jack said loudly. "Before, you know, before I forgot everything; was I clever?"

"You're a smart arse," Owen muttered, and then he looked up. "I guess so. It was always hard to tell."

"How can it be hard to tell?"

"You don't like to tell anyone anything."

"Why not?"

"Jack! You're the only one that knows the answer to that. One thing you are very clever at is keeping secrets. Why does it matter anyway?"

"Well, you're clever, you do all this, and Tosh does all the stuff there…" Jack pointed out to her computer. "And Gwen does lots of clever talking… and she looks like she's in charge and Ianto does lots of things. What do I do?"

"You're the boss, Jack," Owen said. "You do all the hard stuff."

"Like what?" Jack asked.

"Jack, I can't explain your entire life to you. One thing it would take a long time and secondly that just the bits I know. What you are and what you do is just too hard to explain. I don't know if that makes you clever, but you usually have to do a lot of things that people don't like."

Owen watched Jack carefully as he spoke. Similar to every other time he was spoken to, he listened very seriously, taking in what was being said. Although this time Owen doubted his ability to comprehend it entirely. Jack glanced down at the body on the table.

"You mean like killing the weevil. Everyone got mad about that."

Owen shrugged; Jack understood some of it at least. "A little, you were told to stay outside."

"I couldn't, the weevil was hurting Ianto."

Jack jumped as Owen stopped what he was doing completely. He dropped the scalpel onto the table with a clatter and leant on the metal surface with both hands.

"Yes it was, and it was the only way to stop it. I think everyone knows that. You just shouldn't have killed her." He waved one hand at the corpse on the table. The female weevil.

"But she was going to hurt you. Why would I save Ianto and then let one get you?"

Owen opened his mouth to answer. The he frowned. Innocently put like that Jack had a point. He gave a rather wry smile.

"You wouldn't let it get me, that's why you're the boss."

"So I am clever?" Jack said.

"In a resourceful sort of way. We're all clever in our own way. We're all good a different things. Okay?"

"Okay. Owen?"

Owen had reached for the equipment again, wanting to take samples to analyse. He needed something else to do while Jack questioned him. Ianto had the patience of a saint to handle this, Owen decided.

"Yes, Jack."

"If I don't get my memory back do you think I'll get clever again?"

"Perhaps, maybe not in the same way but perhaps. Anyway why do you think you won't get your memory back?"

"Don't know, just…." Jack stopped; he swung his legs a little again and slouched over the lower rail. Owen carried on what he was doing, glancing up at Jack on occasion waiting for him to carry on.

"Would it be better if I didn't?"

"Didn't what?"

"Get my memory back," Jack said, sounding a little irritated. Owen looked up at him in surprise. That opened up a new possibility, that Jack might not want his memories back. Owen stared up into Jack's steady gaze, realising his was absolutely serious.

"No, it wouldn't!" Owen snapped so ferociously that Jack recoiled a little, almost banging his head into the rail above him. Owen rolled his eyes. "Don't make the damage any worse."

"Sorry," Jack said, rubbing his head even though he wasn't hurt. He slouched down again, watching Owen warily as he carried on what he was doing. They both stopped talking, Jack inwardly fretting about what he had said, and what he was thinking. Owen inwardly praying that they could restore Jack's memory.

The fact that he might refuse was not an issue. They needed Jack back, whether he wanted it or not.


	17. Coffee

Ianto stirred in the chair, lifting slowly from the darkness of sleep. He heard the sound of the pterodactyl flying out in the hub. Taking a deep breath he allowed himself to surface further, like swimming out of deep water. He shifted in the chair slowly realising that Jack's familiar weight was not pressed against him.

He opened his eyes and looked around. He was still in Jack's office, slumped in the chair and surrounded by cushions. One was still on the floor, where Jack had obviously been sitting, but now he was very conspicuous by his absence. Surely he couldn't have gone far, Ianto thought to himself.

His legs felt stiff as he lifted them off the other chair and slowly stood up. It had been quite comfortable the night before but not now he had lain there for a while, several hours in fact, he realised as he looked at his watch. And as he realised that his mind felt the mild grogginess that always came after a night on sedatives. Owen had probably got him with that when he had injected the painkillers.

However, he couldn't really argue with it. He felt a lot better and his arm didn't seem to be aching so much. Still, he wouldn't shift the cold feeling of worry in his stomach until he had located Jack.

"Jack?" Ianto called out as he left the office. The lights were on in the autopsy room so he headed out there.

Jack was still sat on the edge of the balcony, although he had pulled one leg back at the sound of Ianto's voice. As he appeared in the doorway he dropped it back down. Jack smiled up at him.

"Hello. You look better."

"That's an improvement on awful," Ianto commented. He looked down into the autopsy bay where Owen was merrily poking around inside the weevil, totally absorbed in what he was doing. Jack peered over the railings again.

"I'm not sure you should be watching this," Ianto said to Jack. Jack turned and looked up at him.

"Why not?"

Before Ianto could answer, Owen looked up. "He's lost his memory Ianto, he's not a child."

Ianto wasn't inclined to think that the two were that mutually exclusive but Jack didn't seem too disturbed by what he was watching. He looked fascinated, pulling faces as he saw Owen study the body.

"Find anything interesting?" Ianto asked.

"I did actually, this," Owen reached over and picked something out of a metal bowl, holding it up.

"Eeewww," Jack said, again, having said it several times during the last few hours and realising it seemed to amuse Owen when he did so.

"Possibly," Owen said in response. Ianto moved further into the room, closer to Jack. Jack reached out a hand and wrapped it around Ianto's calf. Ianto grimaced as he looked at the organ, it wasn't especially large but something about the mound of pink flesh made him feel a little sick.

"And that is?" he asked.

"Icky," Jack said helpfully. Owen grinned at Ianto.

"He's got a great vocabulary at the moment," he commented, and then he sobered up. "I think this is along the lines of a weevil's adrenal gland."

"Is there something wrong with it?" Ianto asked. Owen looked at it.

"What makes you say that?"

"Firstly, it looks infected and secondly, it's the thing you are showing me."

"Two very good points." Owen dropped the flesh back into the bowl, it landed with a sickening, wet plop. Ianto swallowed heavily, Jack hand tensed on his calf and he tugged Ianto's trousers slightly. Ianto looked down at him.

"Are you all right?" Jack asked. Ianto nodded.

"I don't think I want to be looking at a weevil's adrenal gland at seven thirty in the morning. Still, now I have, what is the point?"

"You're right… well almost… it's hellishly inflamed, especially compared to the females."

"Could that be a male/female thing?" Ianto asked, making sure he looked at Owen and not the icky stuff around him. Jack's vocabulary was interesting but also very accurate.

"Don't think so. I compared it to the scan of that other weevil we have, which is also male. His is not like this, although I'd need to get him out of storage and open him up to have a proper look, but most of the time weevils react to the spray. This one didn't, it didn't feel the pain, and all it wanted to do was attack. I think the damn thing would have taken on anything that came close to those babies. I think it's a physiological reaction to the female giving birth, somehow."

"Kind of encouraging him to look after his offspring?" Ianto clarified.

"Exactly, weevils don't have many predators around here, except perhaps each other. I'm looking into the female to see if there's some level of hormonal response, maybe she's encouraging the behaviour. I don't know, I'm thinking a bit hit and miss here. Main point being, I'll see if I can think up something to help fend them off, add something to the anti-weevil spray, in case we ever encounter another one."

Ianto listened to the rant, but it was obvious Owen was talking more to himself than Ianto. It was usually the way he worked, it was better for him to say it out loud to someone.

"At least we have an answer anyway," Ianto said. Owen blinked and looked up. Ianto was still wearing the sling, the bandage wrapped around his bare torso. He was so absorbed in the weevils, he hadn't even noticed.

"How's the arm?"

Ianto shrugged, "aching a little but it feels all right, but I suppose that could still be the painkillers."

"A little," Owen confessed to the hint. Ianto gave a wry smirk. He couldn't argue over the sedative, not at least while he felt much better.

"I'll take a look later," Owen said. "After I've finished here."

"Yeah, I don't want you mucking about with my arm while you're covered in weevil goo."

Jack gave a silly, little giggle.

"Great," Owen said. "We've now got glowy, eeww, icky and goo as four new technical terms, thanks to the boss here. Sounds like something out of Camberwick Green," he added.

Ianto looked down at Jack, who was still giggling. You are so getting wound up when you get your memory back, Ianto thought. He glanced at his watch again.

"Tosh and Gwen should be here soon, I'll go and put the coffee machine on."

"You can't!" Owen said sharply. Jack's hand moved off Ianto's leg.

"Owen, I think I can manage coffee, even with a sore arm."

"It's more the… damage... to the coffee machine."

"Sorry," Jack said. Ianto glanced down, meeting Jack's gaze as he looked up sheepishly.

"Ah," Ianto said, suddenly getting the point.

"I did explain to him three times how to use it, and he reiterated it back word for word."

"Sorry," Jack said again. It was then that Ianto looked at him properly. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, part way up his forearms, but on his nearest arm, just poking out of the material was a white gauze dressing. Ianto put his hand down and Jack reached up to meet him. Ianto took his wrist and pushed the sleeve up to look properly.

"What happened?"

"A shit load of steam. He's fine."

"We match!" Jack said quite proudly.

"His and his dressings; I can't really see that catching on as a marketing ploy," Owen muttered under his breath. Ianto glared at him, and then looked back at Jack. It was then Ianto noticed the coffee mug next to him.

"If the coffee machine is broken, then what is he drinking?"

"I don't know," Owen said.

"Don't you think you ought to," Ianto snapped at him.

"It's the coffee I made, before the machine fizzed… and banged." Jack held it up for inspection. Ianto took it, gazing down into what could only be described as industrial sludge. He sniffed it, recoiled and decided not to test it.

"I did it better at your house," Jack said.

"No, you didn't. I reset the machine and did it again when you weren't looking."

Jack grinned, looking embarrassed, his face flushed a little. "I can't make coffee."

"No, you can't," Ianto said. Jack never could. It was usually passable and he had stopped breaking equipment and cups, but now used to Ianto's coffee Jack had found that he couldn't really drink his own. Now it would appear he was back to square one. Or perhaps worse, Ianto thought, swirling the sludge around in the mug. It stuck to the sides as he did so, grains of coffee bean clinging on and slowly sliding back down into the muck at the bottom.

"Well, since I can't make any I had better go out and buy some."

"You going to be all right?" Owen asked.

"I think I can manage coffee purchasing. Plus, I think we have a cafétiere somewhere, I can get some ground coffee and improvise with that, until we get a new machine," Ianto mused, frowning thoughtfully. Then he looked down at Jack. "You'll have to help me carry it though."

He held out his hand again and Jack took it sliding back on the floor and pulling his legs through under the rail so he could scrabble up. He put a hand on the railings, using that as leverage to get up rather than letting Ianto take the weight. He just took the proffered hand as an excuse to touch Ianto and when he got to his feet he didn't let go.

"I need a shirt, and I'll just get washed up," Ianto said, looking down at himself.

"Which shirt?" Jack asked. "I'll get it."

"The burgundy one, and the socks and underwear." Ianto reminded him. Jack grinned and disappeared off to get everything Ianto needed. Owen watched him go with a slight trace of amusement on his face. Ianto raised his eyebrows.

"Not one word, Owen Harper."

"That's Doctor Owen Harper to you. Go on then off you go."

Ianto rolled his eyes and headed to the wash room; he slid his arm out of the sling and pulled it over his head. A dull throb ran up to his shoulder but for the moment he didn't think anything of it as he wandered across the hub. Jack literally bounded out of the manhole with the shirt, socks and underwear clutched in one hand.

"Wait with Owen," Ianto told him. "I won't be long."


	18. Dependancy

"Shit!" Ianto swore again as the underwear fell for the third time. It had seemed like such a simple thing to do, even with the painkillers wearing off. A quick wash and get dressed again with clean underwear and shirt. Unfortunately it wasn't working like that.

Getting undressed was simple enough, you could do that one handed, or actually one armed. Putting everything back on was, it appeared, another matter entirely.

He looked down at the underwear on the floor, standing there naked in the washroom of the hub trying to control the tears of frustration that were threatening behind his eyes. Very slowly he took a deep breath, trying to control the shaking as the cool air hit his skin. He slowly flexed his right hand, feeling the pain shoot up his arm. The damage to his forearm was affecting his grip, and the dull throb in his shoulder was increasing, making him wonder if he had damaged something up there.

"Are you all right?" Jack wandered in without knocking.

Ianto yelped. Thankfully the towel he had used was draped on the sink to his left so he had no problem when he instinctively grabbed it and covered himself up with it, although probably not before Jack received a good eyeful. He groaned inwardly as Jack's eyes slid right. Since he was deprived of the front view the mirror behind Ianto gave him a good view of his arse instead. There was a look of delight on Jack's face as he took in the sight, but it didn't last long, instead his gaze snapped to Ianto's distressed face.

"Are you all right?" Jack said again, he took the two steps down into the room letting the door swing shut behind him.

"I thought I told you to wait with Owen."

Jack frowned, "you said you wouldn't be long, you've been long. And Tosh is telling him about… something."

"Oh," Ianto said feeling a little panicked now he knew one of the girls was in the hub. He needed to get bloody dressed and quickly. Jack's eyes strayed to his right arm, Ianto watched them flicker to the mirror again. There was no where to really move to in the tiny room to get away from it. But Jack's eyes mainly stayed focussed on the arm.

"Do you need help?" Jack asked.

"No, I'm fine just…"

"Should I get Owen?"

"No!" Ianto yelled as Jack turned to reach for the door. His head snapped back and the frown of confusion deepened to something a little sterner. Jack stepped into the room and crouched down, picking up the dropped underwear. He shook it out slightly and rolled the waistband up to make it more manageable. Then he glanced up at Ianto, his face was back to the innocent expression he had been wearing the last two days but there was a glitter of determination in his eyes that was most definitely Jack. And a Jack that was determined to solve the problem.

"I'll be good."

There wasn't much else for Ianto to do. He put the towel back down, seeing Jack's eyes flicker up to his groin and then quickly back down again. There was no point in Ianto casually telling himself that Jack had seen it all before, because he hadn't, or at least he didn't remember it. And even though he had cuddled him in bed, Ianto had stayed decently dressed the entire time. Ianto couldn't help the flush that ran up his cheeks, nor the light-headed sick feeling that was brought on by the embarrassing situation, on top of the pain and panic he was feeling.

Jack helped Ianto into his underwear one leg at a time and then pulled them up. Ianto took over the left side, which Jack relinquished but he pulled the right side up over his hip, and as good as his word, Jack behaved himself. Once Ianto's underwear was on he got up and reached for the shirt. Opening it up and holding out the right arm for Ianto.

As Jack saw the pain on his face, He changed tactic, pulling the sleeve open he slid it up Ianto's arm onto his shoulder and then moving behind him held the other side so Ianto could put his left arm in. Going full circle Jack straightened the front of the shirt and efficiently buttoned it up, but he left the top button undone. Ianto's tie had gone AWOL and he hadn't thought to get another.

Ianto had no problem with the right cufflink and Jack took the left, working competently. Throughout the entire procedure he hadn't made eye contact once. Not because he was embarrassed, Jack even with his memory wouldn't have been embarrassed. But he would have used an entirely different tactic.

Jack with a memory, would have managed it with a little gentle teasing and flirting, which would have eventually put Ianto at his ease. But he would have known all the same that Ianto needed the job done as quickly as possible. This Jack knew that but didn't have the ability to flirt in an accomplished fashion. So he just did the job. Ianto watched him as Jack reached for his trousers. Ianto was starting to regret not asking them yesterday to bring a clean suit as well. Still he had to make do with what he had. He could always go home later and slouch about in the house, although Jack would have to help him get changed there.

As with the underwear, Jack rolled the waistband of the trousers to make getting them on a little easier and he crouched down again. Ianto feeling a little less vulnerable allowed him to do that, hoping to take over when it came to fastening them up. Jack however was having none of it. He slid Ianto's trousers up over his hips, then holding them with one hand put his other hand around Ianto's back and tucked the shirt in, moving around to the front. Ianto was so taken aback that Jack had the shirt tucked in, trousers fastened and he was doing up Ianto's belt before Ianto could take Jack's wrist to try and stop him. Jack still ignored him buckling the belt and he popped the loose end in through the belt loop before Ianto could pull him away.

"There," Jack said. He looked up, into Ianto's face and smiled gently. "Okay."

Ianto nodded, still feeling the sting of embarrassment of having to have someone dress him. It was ridiculous really. He'd only hurt his arm, but it was something he was starting to learn, damage one thing and it seemed to affect so many other body parts around it. At least the ache in his shoulder had calmed down a little. He took a hitching little breath.

Jack moved carefully to Ianto's left side and reaching out put his arm around him. He pulled Ianto closer to him tucking him close to his side. Instinctively he knew better than to put his hand on Ianto's right shoulder so his hand went around to his ribcage to hold him close.

"It's okay," Jack said in his best soothing voice. Ianto gave a fleeting smirk and yielded to temptation putting his head on Jack's shoulder. Jack thought nothing of it. He had attempted to entice Ianto into sex and he knew now he wasn't going to get anywhere, just yet at least. But there was no sexual agenda in what he was doing now. It was just the sheer logic of his own mind.

Ianto was upset, and the last time he had been upset, even though he had been asleep, Jack hugging him had calmed him down. Therefore his logical learning process told him again that he needed to cuddle him to make Ianto feel better. The gentle tone of voice had worked last time as well.

"It's all right," Jack said. "I'll look after you."

There was a note of stubborn determination in Jack's voice. Ianto couldn't help but smile.

"I thought I was supposed to be looking after you," Ianto said. He felt Jack's cheek brush against the top of his head and the arm around him tightened. Jack turned his head further breathing in and inhaling Ianto's scent. He could smell the soap and deodorant he had used but underneath that there was still the lingering musky scent of sweat. It was also a little sickly sweet, the stress and pain coming out of him. But Jack somehow sensed there was nothing else wrong with him. It had just been a very stressful twenty-four hours. Jack kissed the top of Ianto's head, and cuddled him a little harder.

"I think if I don't make any more coffee, we'll be fine."

Ianto gave a laugh. "Okay."

Jack moved, releasing Ianto and letting him move back. Jack reached up to smooth Ianto's hair, running his fingers through it and he smiled gently at him.

"Okay."

Ianto nodded, his embarrassment abating slightly. He straightened himself up a little.

"We'd better go and see Owen and Tosh before we leave."


	19. Jealousy and Chivalry

Ianto felt a little better out of the hub. He felt like he had been in there forever, even though it had only been overnight. The fresh air made him feel better, or it could have been the painkiller that Owen had given him before he went out.

His arm was again strapped up in the sling. Owen had frowned when Ianto had voiced his concerns about his shoulder. He nodded as he listened to the symptoms, while at the same time putting the weevil corpse in a drawer to send down to the vault.

"I doubt you've done anything serious," he eventually said. "The weevil was yanking your arm around a fair bit and you'd have been tense at the time. It's probably just strained, that or the nerves in your forearm are just sending signals up there. Do you want me to look at it now?" Owen asked. Ianto shook his head.

"No, I'd rather get out and get some air first."

So there he and Jack were, strolling along the streets of Cardiff heading to the coffee shop that Ianto always used. Mainly because the coffee was very good but also, it was on his way to work, so he usually picked anything he needed up on the way in. The Starbucks was nearer but Ianto wanted to walk.

Jack walked along with him, on his right hand side, half a pace or so behind him. Ianto expected him to take the left, so he could attempt physical contact. However, he was walking close to Ianto, with enough space so he wouldn't bang into his sore arm. There was a look of fierce protectiveness on his face as he made sure no one else bumped into Ianto either.

With his height and broad shoulders Jack usually was a commanding enough physical presence and his coat always seemed to enhance those attributes. He was using that to the full, whether he knew it or not. Seeing the look on his face and his hovering closeness to Ianto made everyone around them give him a wide berth.

Ianto didn't think he had much to worry about, with his arm strapped up and his jacket draped over his right shoulder, coupled with his pale face, made it obvious he had suffered a painful injury. Still he didn't say anything to Jack; the embarrassment of Jack dressing him was still stinging, leaving him a little reluctant to say much.

Not that Jack had mentioned it. He had stayed silent when Ianto had talked to Owen. And Ianto got the feeling that Jack knew not to say anything, simply because he had sensed Ianto's embarrassment at the situation.

Ianto slowed as he passed the bakery. It was early in the morning but there was still already a small queue.

"One sec," Ianto said to Jack. He put his head around the door and the woman behind the counter looked up.

"Hello Ianto, love. Oooh," she frowned and grimaced as she looked at his arm strapped up in the sling. "What have you done?"

"Bit of a long story, I'm just off to get some coffee, can I get the usual, and I'll pick it up on the way back."

She smiled at him and nodded. "Sure, I'll get it ready in a minute for you."

"Thanks Sheila," Ianto said, he turned carefully, aware of Jack lingering close behind him, again to protect his right side from any passers by. He backed up as Ianto turned and stepped out of the doorway of the shop. As they moved out a gaggle of schoolgirls wandered past to go in the bakery. They were giggling and whispering to each other but all six of them gave both Jack and Ianto appraising looks.

Jack didn't see the looks sent in his direction, but his eyes narrowed at the ones he saw going in Ianto's.

"Excuse me," Ianto said politely, stepping out of their way. One of the girls gave him a very cheeky, knowing grin and she tossed her straightened hair back off her face.

"Not a problem," she said. She looked him up and down again, until she caught Jack sending a look of daggers at her and she turned away, huddling into the safety of her friends. Ianto didn't even notice that, he had already stepped around them and had carried on down the pavement. He'd been polite and she had at least bothered to acknowledge him. Jack followed in his wake, again staying close to Ianto's side again, but now and again he glanced back the way they had come.

"What's the matter?" Ianto asked when he finally cottoned on to Jack's behaviour.

"They were looking at you!"

Ianto raised his eyebrows. "They were looking at you as well."

"Why?"

"Have you looked in the mirror lately?" Ianto asked him. Jack frowned in confusion. Ianto watched the changing expression on his face as Jack tried to work that out.

"Yes, I think so," Jack said, seriously trying to remember when he had. He must have done, now he was trying to work out what he should have been looking for. "Why?"

As he walked he tried to catch sight of himself in one of the shop windows they passed.

"Never mind Jack, they were looking at you in much the same way they were looking at me. Probably more so."

"Really? Why?"

Well, you're the most good-looking, sexiest man I've ever seen, Ianto thought in his head. But he didn't let the words out. He clamped his tongue down at the last moment, before he automatically answered. The questions were asked so innocently it almost brought on an immediate response.

And it wasn't that he was afraid to tell Jack what he thought. Well, not this Jack anyway. The thing that clammed Ianto up was the thought of what Jack would say when he got his memory back. If he remembered what was going on now then Ianto would feel very nervous about having said it to him. He had so often avoided saying anything of that nature directly to Jack, that he didn't think he could break the habit now.

It had often baffled him, at the very beginning. Whether or not Jack's sexual innuendos and flirting were really meant or not. He seemed to do the same to everyone, so Ianto had been able to ignore it on a very conscious level. After Lisa, however, the situation became different. It seemed Jack had changed tactic. Instead of being so openly flirtatious he had become gentler and subtle.

Ianto so numb with shock over those months had been so desperate to feel something that he had allowed Jack access to him, to his feelings, to his body, to everything he was. But Ianto had held his feelings on Jack back, until he had become terrified of them. He didn't really ever need to say anything, so he hadn't. Jack had always seemed to know without words.

He didn't think Jack would use anything he said against him. It certainly would have been against Jack's nature to do so. But now and again Ianto doubted himself, doubted that he could really hold onto Jack, if he started to cling too tight. Ianto always assumed Jack was holding something back, some level of emotion that no one could reach. It hadn't occurred to Ianto that it was in fact the other way round.

Jack was clinging to him. He had seen so many people pass by. People that he had liked, and loved and that had eventually left, they had died, while Jack stayed the same, or they changed and moved on; Ianto was aware that also happened. But no one could blame those people for leaving, no one had ever really walked away from Jack, except one. And that one had done the damage.

That was the one that made Ianto now feel so utterly inferior, because that was the one, the Doctor, that Jack had abandoned him for. He had come back but despite what Jack said, Ianto had doubted the motives. Now as he looked at Jack, caught up in a net of minor jealously, simply because Ianto had been looked at he wondered.

Did Jack always noticed that kind of thing and with his memory, some hindsight, how did he note it? Jack would probably like it, knowing his own possession of Ianto, but was that laced with just a twinge of jealousy. And if so, was that why it was so strong now.

As Ianto paused by the coffee shop Jack still waited for his answer.

"Because people do that."

"But they were looking at you like…" Jack stumbled on how to explain it. "Like they wanted you."

"People look at you like that," Ianto reasoned.

"You don't."

"Yes, I do," Ianto said. Jack smiled, Ianto's eyes flickered closed and then opened. "I do, Jack all right, but that doesn't mean…"

He left the sentence hanging the explanation clear. Jack nodded, his hand slipped into his trouser pockets, his shoulders hunching slightly.

"But do you…" Jack started and paused, his shoulders hunching further. He leant closer into Ianto and Ianto stepped back, drawing Jack with him, to move them both out of the flow of human traffic. "… with anyone else?"

"No!" Ianto said loudly, drawing a few stares. He flinched and lowered his voice. "No, of course not."

"But you do with me… did with me," Jack said. The hint in his voice very obvious. Ianto closed his eyes.

"I'm sorry, but I can't, not like this, because I just keep thinking how angry I would be if it was the other way round."

He opened his eyes and met Jack's. Jack nodded, again his face serious, like he was really listening to everything that was said. Most of the time it didn't feel like Jack did that, but maybe, he actually did. This time Jack nodded.

"Okay, but if I don't get my memory back soon, I want to have sex with you," Jack said, stating the facts as he saw them. Ianto rolled his eyes, hoping no one had heard that. He didn't get much of a chance to really see if they had or not, because Jack suddenly moved. Ianto didn't even see it coming, but Jack, playing the protective bodyguard was more than aware.

Ianto had the door to the coffee shop behind him, and it swung open. It was pushed by someone using their back to lever it open as they carried their coffees out. They shoved the door out, the edge of the door perfectly aimed to hit Ianto's right shoulder, and it would have sent a jarring pain down it to his forearm. Except Jack took it for him. He moved reaching to grab the door as it swung outwards.

Gasping, Ianto turned, cradled in the curve of Jack's body as he stepped past Ianto and caught the door. The force of it must have sent a shockwave through Jack, but he could take it letting it run down his body without pain. Then he let the door go. The person that had pushed it turned, realising they had hit something at force.

"Sorry mate I didn't see…" Rhys stopped as he looked at Jack, straight into a set of furious blue eyes. But Rhys didn't falter; instead he looked around and saw Ianto. "…You there. Hi, Jack… Ianto."

"Hello," Jack said in an unfriendly voice, he looked to Ianto for what to do. He didn't expect the person to know him.

"Hi, Rhys."

Rhys looked down, taking in Ianto's arm and then back up to his face.

"Wow, you look…"

"Awful?" Ianto asked.

Rhys shrugged, "I was going to say rough but… yeah, mate, you don't look good. Gwen said you'd…. " He paused and looked around. "She said it was a bad accident but… are you all right?"

"Yeah, fine-ish. I think I'll get over it."

"Ianto, do I know this guy?" Jack hissed in his ear, loud enough for Rhys to overhear. Ianto smiled at Rhys, who raised his eyebrows, gazed at Jack and then looked to Ianto.

"Gwen told me… a little…"

"Ianto?"

"Jack, please; just a second." Ianto couldn't manage two conversations at once. "Yeah, sorry, he's got amnesia. This is Rhys, Gwen's husband."

Jack processed that, his eyes widened then he nodded. "He was the one that didn't want Gwen to bring me home. Owen said."

"What?!" Rhys asked loudly. Ianto waved his left hand trying to dispel any misunderstandings before they started.

"No, what he means is Gwen offered to look after Jack overnight, Owen didn't think you'd appreciate it too much."

"Oh," Rhys, for a moment looked as childlike and innocent as Jack did. Then he seemed to pull himself together. "Oh, right, yeah… I see what you mean. Well, I mean if there's no one else, or anything then I'm sure we could help."

"No!" Jack said.

"Kind of a superfluous argument now," Ianto said ruefully. "I need someone to help me out a bit. I don't have a fully functioning pair of hands anymore and I usually needed three pairs to start with."

Rhys grinned. He remembered Ianto at his wedding. "Yeah, you really are all purpose."

Ianto smiled back. He knew full well he had done one thing to endear himself to Rhys. But first he had pulled the wedding together after the disaster of the Nostravite, and then, most importantly, he had interrupted Gwen and Jack's dance so that he could dance with Jack. That told Rhys everything and made Ianto his almost best friend. Or at least the most reassuring person to know in Torchwood. They had had a bit of a long talk about their respective partners at the wedding reception.

"So, I kind of need him to help me, don't worry about Gwen bringing him home," Ianto said. Jack frowned; suddenly realising he was hearing a conversation with an underlying tone. He frowned again, looking lost.

"Sorry. We've got to go."

"Get Gwen her coffee, she's in a bad mood, her mother rang this morning."

"Is she in then?"

"Yeah, I just dropped her off; you must have just missed her. Better go, I have to get these to the lads. Managerial responsibility this is!" Rhys grinned, and almost shuffled away. But suddenly his face dropped and he held out one hand, holding a cup of coffee, reaching for something behind Ianto.

Ianto and even Jack were too late. Someone brushed past Ianto, he hit his left side but the force that he pushed him with shoved him into Jack. Jack took the brunt of the force, trying to cradle Ianto as his shoulder and damaged arm jerked violently. Ianto wasn't expecting it and the feel of the blow made him waver violently. Jack caught him, probably not helping initially but at least he kept him steady. Despite that Jack still glared at the person responsible, ready to shout, although he didn't know quite what to say. However, Rhys did.

"Hey, you idiot!" he bellowed at the person responsible, drawing the attention of everyone in the vicinity. "Watch where you're going!"

"Don't get in the way then!" he retorted, without looking round. Jack got ready to pounce, but even Rhys wasn't having that. He put the tray of coffee's he was carrying down and grabbed the man's arm, jerking him round, so he could see Ianto.

"You've just knocked someone who has a…" Rhys faltered, and then thought of the best thing he could, "broken arm… wrist."

It didn't really matter what he said. The man saw Ianto, slowly being steadied by Jack. Ianto brought himself upright, trying not to look quite so weak and feeble.

"You know, you'd think people would look once in a while. I nearly knocked him over but at least I was paying enough attention!" Rhys carried on. He wasn't letting go.

"I'm all right," Ianto said weakly. But the man had got the point.

"Sorry!" But he didn't sound it.

"Ianto!" Karl the manager of the shop joined the melee. Oh God, I don't need this, Ianto said to himself. Jack kept a protective arm around him.

"He's fine," Jack said calmly.

"Not helped by the rude people of this world," Rhys said. Jack smiled. He decided he really liked Rhys. It was possible he had before his amnesia but he really did at that point in time.

"Sorry, mate." The man scurried away, helped by Rhys's loud voice and Jack's hard stare. He didn't even enter the shop; he just went away as quickly as possible. Karl looked at Ianto.

"Do you want to sit down?"

"No," Ianto said, steadied by Jack holding him upright and Rhys being so outraged for him. "Could you just get our usual together please and put it on the slate… oh and can I get some ground Columbian as well?"

"Sure, no worries."

Karl went away, the world went away, or at least the immediate part of it went back to it's usual routine. Rhys looked at Jack.

"Let's take him over here." Rhys indicated a little enclave just the left of the shop. Jack took the hint and gently guided Ianto out of the way, into the dark, cool corner.

"Are you all right there?" Rhys asked.

"I could have done without that but thanks to not one but two chivalrous gentlemen, I'm fine. Actually, it's not hurting too much and my shoulder feels better."

"Are you sure? Should I call Gwen?"

"No, no, I'm fine. Jack can carry the coffee's and we'll walk back. I'm fine, honest; thanks though." Ianto smiled.

"Oh don't worry, I'm good at that, Rhys the Rant I am. Sorry, I'd better rescue the early morning wake up for my crew. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, Karl will bring it out for me. I'm fine. Rhys, I'm fine, I'm okay."

Rhys nodded once, and he took the hint. He had done enough, probably more than enough. Perhaps he shouldn't have brought what was going on to the attention everyone around him but he did it for the right reasons. Ianto closed his eyes, took a deep breath. The painkillers were really starting to kick in.

"Here you go, Ianto."

Karl had some out with a tray of coffee's for him and a bag with the ground beans. Jack took them. Ianto wasn't able to.

"Thank you," Jack said firmly, with the 'go away' hint clearly there. Ianto paid a little more attention to what was going on around him.

"Thanks Karl, sorry about the fracas but my arm is really giving me... problems."

"That's all right, my customer's love a bit of noise in the morning. The best one was the two girls deciding to have a scrap right outside the shop. I was not getting involved in that one." Karl grinned and then inclined his head to the door. "I'd better…"

"Sure, thanks," Ianto said. He exhaled a heavy breath as Karl disappeared; relaxing a little now it was just him and Jack. Things were a lot easier when it was just the two of them. Everyone else getting involved seemed to make the whole thing so much more complicated.

"Sorry," Jack said. Ianto looked at him, Jack's eyes blinked intensely as he looked Ianto up and down.

"Not your fault."

"That makes a change."

"Jack, don't talk like that. Come on."

Again Jack took vigil on Ianto's right, judging by the look on his face he was even more determined than ever to protect Ianto.

"We'll pick the stuff up at the bakery and then head back," Ianto said calmly, having recovered his equilibrium. He turned to look at Jack, whose eyes had narrowed as they scanned the crowds passing them, not because he was looking for something, but because he was also thinking.

"What's up?" Ianto asked. It was nice to ask Jack questions like that and be guaranteed a clear answer.

"Rhys didn't look at you like… that," Jack said.

"He's married to Gwen; he looks at Gwen like that."

"Oh, but the other guy didn't either."

Ianto could only assume that Jack was referring to Karl.

"Not everyone will, just some people," Ianto explained. Jack nodded. He was silent for a moment, obviously thinking about it. Ianto watched him carefully as they strolled along. Jack opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again. Whatever he was trying to work out still wasn't clear in his mind. They paused by the bakery and Jack waited outside while Ianto picked up the bag of doughnuts and pastries that they all seemed to need before they did anything in the morning.

As he came out, Jack was ready.

"So, people just look at each other then but not all the time?"

"Yeah, sometimes it's just looking for the sake of looking. It doesn't mean anything," Ianto said. Jack nodded seemingly satisfied with that.

"I didn't like it though."

"What?" Ianto said. Jack moved to his right side again, holding the coffee's carefully. Ianto kept hold of the bag of pastries; he was at least up to carrying that.

"Those girls looking at you."

Ianto had to smile at the jealous tone of Jack's voice.

"Oh Jack, you are sweet."

He had to laugh when Jack grinned in delight.


	20. Quite Time

"That one in there," Ianto said. "And the other one in there."

He watched Jack as he carefully put the two files back into the drawer, in the relevant places. Unlike Jack's usual method of just stuffing it back in haphazardly, this time he was making an effort to put it in as tidily as the rest of the files in the drawer. It made a nice change, Ianto thought to himself. Usually if Jack had been in the archive Ianto had to go through and straighten everything up. He was still trying to find a way to stop Jack from going into the files, but now and again he couldn't stop him.

"Done," Jack said, closing the drawer. He turned to smile at Ianto.

"Next lot," Ianto said, going back over to the large table in the centre of the room. Jack followed him, sitting down next to him as he perched on the table.

When they had come back from the coffee run Owen had examined Ianto's arm, while Jack had regaled them with the story of what happened outside the coffee shop. Gwen seemed quite pleased with Rhys's part in it and Owen had thought the bit with the schoolgirls hysterical. Thankfully Ianto managed to distract Jack before got to the part about Ianto calling him sweet.

Owen had eventually declared, after the examination, that Ianto had strained the muscles in his shoulder. Probably when the weevil had pulled him about. He insisted that Ianto keep his arm strapped up for the time being.

So, after Owen had changed the dressings and given him an anti-biotic, Jack had given his obligatory 'eeww' comment about the state of Ianto's arm, and everyone had ignored the fact that Jack insisted on helping Ianto into his shirt and Owen had reset the sling, Ianto had gone down to tidy up the archive. With Jack in tow as a helper.

At least he had persuaded Owen he was fit enough to work. The day looked like it was going to be fairly quiet. So they did what they always did on those days.

Toshiko cleaned up the hubs hard drives and ran de-fragmentation programmes and caught up on all her projects that had fallen by the wayside.

Owen tided the alien morgue, cleaned up around the autopsy room and actually did some of the reports that he usually managed to ignore for most of the time. Then when he got bored he'd play computer games, the beeping eventually driving the rest of them mad.

Gwen would usually clean, field phone calls and then go down to the firing range to practice. It was something she often enjoyed, having found that it relieved any stress. Jack was impressed at how good she was now. This time however, she ended up doing Jack's paperwork. She was familiar with it now, when Jack was away she had helped Ianto keep up with it, and his ability to fake Jack's signature meant that it stopped any awkward questions from being asked.

Plus they had received several irate phone calls from the Cardiff police regarding why four of their officers had attended an emergency call to a house and after meeting Torchwood there suddenly couldn't remember why they had been called. That was another thing Gwen was trying to smooth over.

And Ianto went down to the archives to tidy up; since everyone else didn't file to his high standards he was usually forced to clean up after them. Since he had been covering more field missions recently it had fallen badly by the wayside, the huge table in the centre was littered with files, several of the piles had tipped over, which meant he also had to slot the papers back before he could put them away.

This time he had help. Jack was doing most of it because Ianto was limited by only having one hand, his left. Hence why Gwen had offered to write up the paper work and chase up anything else they needed from UNIT, as they hadn't corresponded for a while.

Ianto started on his next pile, sitting himself down on the space he had created on the desk. Jack jumped up next to him. The table wobbled ominously but had managed to hold for the entire afternoon so Ianto didn't worry too much about it collapsing. As he started to go through one file he again felt Jack's hand steal onto his thigh.

He had been doing that all afternoon. It had started off as a tentative brush against his right leg, and when Ianto hadn't mounted any objection so Jack had become bolder. Until now, four hours later, every time they sat down, he put his hand on Ianto's leg. He hadn't tried anything further, he seemed quite happy with that, while he waited for Ianto to organise the next pile of files.

Since Jack couldn't actually read at the moment he was no help in putting the files together. It was odd; Ianto had pointed it out to Owen who shrugged.

"It's a memory, something he learnt to do," Owen said. "And we don't know when he learnt to read English, maybe it's jumbled up with all that energy and because of that he's lost the ability."

"Perhaps we could get him to read some of the alien stuff I'm trying to translate, maybe that will make more sense to him."

It actually hadn't, so Toshiko had scrapped that idea and gone back to sorting the hard drive.

"Ianto?" He suddenly heard Toshiko's voice over the com. He pressed his receiver to activate it.

"Yeah, go ahead."

"How's the archive search coming on, have you found any matches?"

Ianto turned and looked at the computer behind him. While he was down here he was also making use of his time trying to find any reference to the strange energy in Jack, and cases of amnesia. So far the search hadn't pulled anything up, so he had changed the parameters slightly.

"Not so far, and by that alone I would suggest we won't have any luck."

He heard her sigh over the com and then she took a breath. "I'm going to try something else, expand the search for any reports of this kind of amnesia, or any unusual cases. I'll try UNIT but I may go a bit covertly there, I don't really want to let slip about… the current problem."

"Okay, good idea."

"Owen's still looking at the Microtron, seeing if we can use that. He thinks it's possible but we can't as yet hone down the energy frequency. We'd need to test it on something else first though."

"Okay," Ianto said.

Owen had suggested trying to convert the singularity scalpel again, but Ianto had vetoed that, with Gwen's back-up. She had experienced how it worked and she didn't think it would simply work as a method. It was far too much of a risk. She had been forced to take it because of the situation. This was not quite as urgent. Jack wasn't in any immediate danger, that was the first thing to worry about, but it didn't appear to be a worry.

Ianto tensed as Toshiko talked, his mind half took in what she was saying. He had been so absorbed in the conversation that Jack had managed to slide his hand all the way to the top of Ianto's thigh, and his fingertips were now gently stroking his groin. Jack grinned and giggled as Ianto's eyes widened and he used his left hand to swat at Jack's wrist.

"Stop it!" he hissed at Jack. Jack did, he slid his hand down Ianto's thigh, but he looked utterly unrepentant, a huge grin on his face. "Sorry, say that again Tosh."

"I said," she repeated slowly. "Owen wants to run another scan. He doesn't think the energy is dispersing, as it should, but it's not increasing either. The fact that it's so static suggests that it could be being controlled."

"By who?" Ianto gave Jack a mock glare as the hand started to climb again.

"That, he says, is the question."

"Great. Does he want Jack up there now?"

Jack scowled, he didn't want to go up to the main area of the hub. He was enjoying himself down here.

"No, give him an hour or so and he'll probably come down and find you."

"Under a mountain of files," Ianto said. "Okay Tosh, let me know if you find anything else." He pressed the button to mute the com again and then grabbed Jack's wrist as he reached Ianto's groin again.

"Stop that!" Ianto laughed as Jack grinned again.

"I don't want to! I'm bored!" he said. Although he wasn't actually all that bored, it was such a new experience he was enjoying himself. He wondered if he had done the filing before, with Ianto. It seemed so cut off from the main area of the hub that Jack wondered what they could possibly get up to. Hence his wandering hand.

"Well, now you know how I feel when your mess leaves me stuck down here for hours on end!" Ianto retorted. Jack's hand stroked his leg.

"Don't I come and help?"

"Not often. You're usually busy."

"I can't be all the time," Jack's hand slid up again. Ianto shuffled away a little, he could feel his erection growing under Jack's gentle touch, and Jack could probably feel it as well, every time he touched him.

"You can. You are very good at avoiding anything like this, besides I can't trust you around the shredder," Ianto said. Jack grinned, his hand moving again. Ianto picked up the three heavy files he had just sorted and smacked Jack's arm with it.

"Stop it! Or I'll make you go and sit with Owen."

Jack didn't take that threat too seriously since Ianto was laughing as he said it. But he stopped immediately, sliding his hands down under his thighs. His current method of preventing any unwarranted fidgeting. Ianto finished the files he was doing. Jack sat and watched him, looking him up and down. Ianto piled the five files he had sorted together and stood up.

"Right, those five." He pointed at them and Jack picked them up. Ianto went to the relevant drawer, suddenly very aware of Jack walking along behind him. He pulled out of the drawer and pointed to the five sections he wanted the files in.

"First one in there, and then there…"

Jack obeyed. Ianto stepped to the side, watching Jack in profile as he concentrated on what he was doing. He put a hand out, touching Jack in the small of the back, then slowly he moved down, sliding his hand over his belt and down to his backside, gently cupping Jack's left buttock. He watched Jack's reaction carefully. At the touch he had jumped slightly, but as he still carefully concentrated on filing the papers away and smile spread across his face.

He didn't say anything as Ianto's hand casually continued to stroke his backside, he just made sure he put all the files in the correct place. Then he closed the drawer and glanced at Ianto.

"I thought that was unethical."

Ianto blushed a little. "You started it Jack Harkness, and I think there is a slight difference between sex and a grope of arse."

"Not by much, you could be taking advantage of me here."

"I don't think so, plus I think sex is a little off the agenda with my arm strapped up like this." He nodded his head down at his right arm. Jack flinched when he looked at it. It was entirely possible Jack with his memories would come up with an entirely new position to accommodate it, but this Jack wouldn't.

"So groping is allowed then?" Jack asked. His right hand slid down from Ianto's waist, over his hip. Ianto smiled at him, his conscience tweaked a little, telling him maybe he shouldn't be doing this. That it really wasn't ethical, but he reminded himself Owen had pointed out that Jack wasn't a child. And Ianto had no intention of taking it too far, he couldn't to that to Jack, but nor did he want to make Jack feel like he was rejecting him. He wasn't, he seriously wasn't. Jack was so sweet-natured at the moment it was getting a little hard to resist him. Especially since, now and again, he did something that was so quintessentially Jack that all Ianto could think was they still did have his core personality. He just wasn't able to hide it anymore.

But still his conscience flickered again. What would Jack make of it, when he returned? Still, this Jack expected an answer.

"Like Owen said," Ianto repeated his thought. "You're not a child, you're just not all you, at the moment."

Jack smiled. Ianto frowned though as he thought about it.

"Why do you want to have sex with me? Why just me?"

Ianto was, in fact, despite his previous behaviour, the only person he was really pushing to be with. He didn't want to be left too long without Ianto, but Ianto put that down to Jack's insecurity. He was convinced Owen had that one right; Ianto had just imprinted himself onto Jack as he was the first person he had met. Like a duckling with its mother.

"Because you're nice, you don't shout at me…" Jack's face tensed in confusion. "I want to; you're nice and have pretty eyes, to go with the rest of you."

Ianto smiled at the compliment. But something inside worried him, well, it didn't exactly worry him, it more sort of confused him. It was a little hard, when you were around Jack all the time to think much of yourself. Ianto had been surprised when he had met Jack, he had been so brave, funny and good-looking and Jack seemed so aware of his attributes. Ianto had never really had much cause to feel that about himself. He felt more than a little inadequate around Jack, especially as he was so good at blending into the background.

It had never really occurred to him much about how Jack felt about him. Ianto presumed he was one of the many that Jack just picked for convenience sake. He was so emotionally traumatised at the time after Canary Wharf that he never really realised if he was coming or going. But having spent so much time with Jack recently, in this raw and vulnerable state, he was starting to have other ideas.

Although he had placated him by a loophole Jack had been pissed off when Ianto, upsetting Gwen's 'who did you last kiss game', when they were off camping, announced it was Lisa. He had known the game wasn't really intended for him, mostly for Owen. Ianto had assumed that Jack was pissed off at him for bringing Lisa up, not because he had lied about, or ignored their kiss. Technically, he'd been unconscious anyway, it was all Jack. Plus Ianto had challenged him on the non-human lifeform comment.

Now it made Ianto wonder if Jack had been… well… more than just looking to him for convenience sake.

"I've been called a lot in my time, but never pretty," Ianto said with a smile. Jack grinned.

"Well, you are, so… touching's allowed?"

"I'm still not going to take advantage of you Jack, I pretty much can't at the moment but… you're still you. Very much still you."

"And I'm getting to know you all over again," Jack said. Ianto smiled, but it was a little forced. Jack may have been getting to know him a second time. But for Ianto learning about Jack, this was the first. For the last year, a little bit longer, Ianto thought, he had slept with Jack. And spent a huge amount of time with him, and still seemed to know nothing about him. It hurt Ianto a little. But he was starting to understand what Jack was hiding.

The others didn't really seem to understand it, but Ianto did. He had been gazing hopelessly at Jack for months, feeling that he didn't really know the person he loved. He had, but he had just looked at it from totally the wrong angle.

"I guess," Ianto said. He moved his hand upwards, over Jack's torso and over his neck. Ianto leant in and Jack followed. Ianto pressed his lips to Jack's kissing him lightly. Jack responded to him and Ianto slid his tongue between Jack's lips.

There was something very tentative to the way that Jack responded. But Ianto realised it was because he was copying him. Jack wasn't going over a boundary unless Ianto crossed it first. Ianto held the rule book firmly in his own hand.

They stayed locked together, however Jack still kept a minute distance from Ianto to avoid his injured arm. Eventually they broke away and looked at each other. Jack looked at Ianto with dilated eyes, a tentative, innocent smile on his face. Ianto felt his cheeks flush and he looked around.

"We should be filing."

Jack's eyes rolled and he grinned. "Yeah, that's what we should be doing." He turned around and picked up the next file staring at the label and then frowning at the drawer.

"There," Ianto said helpfully, pointing at the space. As Jack started to file Ianto put his hand back in the small of Jack's back.

"Ianto?" Jack said, without looking up.

"What?"

"Your hand was lower than that."

"Oh, sorry."

The game of file, grope and kiss carried on for another forty minutes. It was only abruptly stopped when Jack found the ticklish point on the back of Ianto's thigh just over the crook his knee. As Jack applied pressure Ianto brought his leg up kicking the open drawer with a heavy thump, banging his kneecap hard. The sound echoed around the room

"OW!" Ianto yelped involuntarily.

"Sorry!" Jack was horror struck. He went down to touch Ianto's knee where he had banged it, rubbing it through his trousers. There was nothing sexual about it this time, Jack was checking for damage.

"I'm all right Jack, I'm fine," Ianto said, trying to stop him rubbing his knee and to get him calm.

"I'm sorry!" Jack looked up, he was close to tears. Ianto pulled him upright and ran his fingers through Jack's hair.

"It's fine, it's just a little knock."

Ianto did actually feel fine. The drawer had been open at the time so all he had really done was shunt it home with just a little more force than he had liked. It was not a stationary object so the drawer had absorbed the impact.

"Jack! Jack, come on, it's fine, don't be silly," Ianto said as he saw tears start to leak out of Jack's eyes. "Oh come on."

He didn't know quite what else to say as Jack started to cry. He pulled him a little closer but Jack tensed, being extra careful of Ianto's arm and his entire body in general.

"I'm sorry."

"Oh Jack, don't cry, I'm fine."

Ianto put his hand in Jack's hair, sensing that Jack was too nervous to come close for a hug. He ran his fingers through his hair, stroking his scalp lightly. Jack looked at him, tears making his eyes look glassy and as he blinked they flowed down his cheeks.

"I'm sorry, I seem to keep hurting you!"

"You don't Jack… what makes you say that?"

"Well, you were all upset when I got into bed with you, and you were angry in the morning and then the weevil hurt you and everyone was mad because I shot them and if I wasn't like this then it's wouldn't have happened! I'd have known what to do!"

Jack shouted the last sentence at him. Ianto didn't move, he carried on stroking Jack's hair, waiting for him to settle and look at him. He had stopped crying but he face was tense, waiting for the next explosion. Ianto smiled gently.

"It's all right Jack. You don't always know what to do. I'm fine, it's all right," Ianto said gently. Jack blinked and a few more tears leaked out. Ianto couldn't stop himself he leant forward and kissed Jack's cheek, tasting the tears that ran from his eyes. "I'm fine."

"What if I don't get fixed?" Jack said, his voice broke as he spoke.

"Then I'll look after you. Don't worry Jack, no ones going to… get so mad they leave you." It was the best Ianto could come up with but it seemed to hone Jack's worries down to a nutshell. "I'll look after you."

"Who'll look after you?"

"Jack, you saved me, from the weevil, you saved my life or a least from me getting my arm ripped off. I think we need to teach you some tact, but you will get your memory back. Everything will be fine, okay, I promise."

How many times could he repeat that? It wasn't Jack's fault but he seemed to think it was.

"Promise?" Jack demanded, rather petulantly. Ianto took his hand, squeezing it lightly.

"I promise."

Jack smiled and Ianto tensed as he heard Owen's voice in his ear. He released Jack's hand and activated the comm in his ear.

"Go ahead, Owen."

"Can you send Jack up? Just got a thing I want to test on him? If you are all right on your own."

"Yeah, that's fine, I'll send Jack up now," Ianto smiled at Jack, who smiled back.

"Owen wants to see you."

"Why?" Jack asked.

"I dare say he wants to point some stupid bit of equipment at you and then state the obvious," Ianto said with a wicked grin. Jack giggled. "Go on then," Ianto said. "Mustn't disappoint him."

"Are you all right?"

"I'll carry on the filing, I can manage."

Jack didn't look convinced. Ianto sighed and tried again.

"Jack, I am fine, if I need your help I'll get Owen to send you back down."

"You won't leave me."

"No, Jack, go and see Owen," Ianto stepped forward. Jack looked down, measuring Ianto's steps. "And my knee is fine."

Jack nodded slowly and he left the room. Ianto shook his head with a smile and slowly returned to what he was doing. Slowly was the word, even with the silly game it was much quicker with Jack's two hands. Ianto's one took a very long time. He paused as Owen buzzed in his ear again.

"Have you sent Jack up?"

Ianto turned to the doorway to find Jack peering around it, watching what he was doing.

"Jack?"

Jack stepped forward, appearing fully in the doorway, looking very caught out. "I was just checking."

Then he spun on his heel and ran upstairs.


	21. Regrets

Ianto carried on. It took him a long time, with only one hand. The filing was slower but after he got himself into a system it seemed to work out quite efficient. With Jack's help he had managed to clear almost three quarters of the table and mooching along on his own he slowly went through the rest. Until Owen interrupted him.

"Are you and Jack ready to go home then?" he announced over the comms. Ianto looked at his watch, it was twenty to five.

"Have you finished with Jack then?"

There was a long buzzing pause over the comm. "About forty minutes ago, I sent him back down to you."

Ianto looked up, his stomach tensed, his inners running cold for one terrifying moment. Several facts landed in his brain, adding up and making him panic. He had been upset, Owen probably didn't help and Jack still had his wrist strap. The fact that he hadn't paid much attention to it didn't eliminate the fact that it probably still held the codes to allow Jack out of the building. Or wherever he wanted in the building.

"He's not here, he must have got lost…"

"How the hell can he get lost?" Owen snapped. "He can't have got anywhere; at least he hasn't managed to blow anything up as yet! But…"

"Its fine," Toshiko said calmly over the comms. She looked at Jack, sat on the stone floor of the vaults. "Vaults, Level One, Ianto, he's looking at the weevil babies."

Tosh snapped off the comm she didn't need fractious men annoying her when she dealt with a fractious amnesiac. She stepped forward. Jack's eyes flickered towards her but then went back to the two little creatures. Toshiko moved round and looked at Janet. The adult weevil was at the corner of her cell, near Jack and the babies. She was giving off, low steady growls. They sounded very soothing, but Tosh frowned, they did not seem to be just directed at the two babies.

Janet lurched up and snarled as Tosh stepped forward and crouched down close to Jack

"Jack, are you all right?"

Toshiko ignored Janet's jealous behaviour. She always did it when people strayed too close to Jack, unless it was Ianto. Ianto was growled at, but somehow it was clear she tolerated him. Jack looked at Janet in shock.

"Is she all right?"

"She's fine," Toshiko said with a slight smile. She looked at the little babies in the cell next door. Mini weevils. There was no other discernable quality about then except their size. They still had the teeth, the nature of a weevil. It was just in a smaller package.

"Does she like them?"

"I think she recognises them as youngsters, maybe it brings out her protective nature."

"That's nice," Jack said absently. He put up a hand to the reinforced plastic wall. One of the little babies followed the movement trying to chew through the partition to get to him. The other had its nose in the food that Toshiko had left. It was nothing spectacular; she had bought some mincemeat and softened it up even further with some milk. Owen seemed to think it was a good enough idea, guessing that the weevil mother regurgitated food. The mince had a similar consistency.

Toshiko smiled as the little weevil pulled back; sneezing violently as some milk went up its nose. The little thing shook its head vigorously banging into its cell mate. The other weevil whirled round and knocked the sneezing one down. For a moment the two little weevils tussled, growling and snapping at each other. It was, in fact, rather cute.

Jack, however, didn't seem to think so. He leant forward, pressing his head against the partition then he glanced at Toshiko, worry written all over his face.

"Are they all right?"

Toshiko looked at him. Crouched down she was on eye level with him. Janet snarled again, louder this time. And the babies stopped scrapping and crawled to the corner, snarling and snapping in response. Janet gave another low purr. It sounded like a purr to Tosh. Her head snapped round and she pressed the comm.

"Owen, are you recording this?"

"What?"

"The weevil interaction, Janet's making sounds like… I don't know what she sounds like actually. Rather maternal though I think."

"It will be on the footage, do you want me to isolate the sounds for you?"

"Thanks," Tosh said. Jack's eyes were on her listening intently, then he looked down at the babies. One of them was still trying to nibble on his hand through the clear partition.

"Jack they're fine. We'll look after them, and they have Janet for company."

Janet, seeming to realise the conversation included her, growled at Toshiko in an unfriendly manner. The babies scrabbled over each other, snarling at her in response. Janet gave another low purr.

"Could we put them in with her, so she can look after them?" Jack asked. He was watching the two little things intently, worried about them because their fate was all his fault.

"Not really," Toshiko said gently. "She could still be aggressive towards them, if they don't smell right, or she doesn't recognise them. This could just be an automatic response."

"What's going to happen to them?" Jack asked his voice low. Toshiko smiled.

"We'll look after them. They'll be fine."

Jack looked up and around at the cell the babies were locked in. "Not much of a life is it. Locked up in here for the rest of their lives."

Toshiko was so stunned by the comment she wasn't sure how to answer. Jack never commented on the containment of the weevils. It was necessary when they went rogue to control them. They were dangerous creatures, those that came to the surface. It never occurred to her that Jack felt sorry for them. He always just seemed so practical about what needed to be done.

As Jack looked to her for an answer she was distracted by Ianto appearing in the doorway. When she looked up Jack's head moved round to follow her. Ianto smiled in relief as he saw Jack sat cross-legged on the floor in front of the cell.

"You had me worried for a minute then," he said, moving closer. Jack smiled up at him and Toshiko watched as Ianto casually put his hand on Jack's head and Jack put his head against Ianto's leg.

"Sorry," Jack said.

"It's all right, just tell someone where you're going next time," Ianto said stroking Jack's hair. Janet looked up and growled at him. It wasn't aggressive; there was something else to it as she looked up at Ianto.

"Hi Janet," Ianto said. Janet's head moved and she purred at the babies again. Ianto raised his eyebrows.

"That's a new one."

"I think she's gone broody," Toshiko said. She rose to her feet as elegantly as she could in heels and a pencil skirt. Jack gazed intently at her as she moved, his eyes concentrated on the curve of her hip and legs. Self-consciously she smoothed her skirt down, Jack's eyes widened a little. She avoided looking at him and concentrated on Ianto. Jack's head turned again, to Ianto, following her gaze.

"Would she really hurt them if we put her in there?"

Ianto frowned; he looked at Janet and the little weevils. Both of them now were chewing at the minced meat, Janet was still growling.

"I wouldn't want to risk it. She might be responsive to them but she's still a little wild."

"Would she really hurt them?" Jack asked, sounding shocked. Ianto shrugged.

"It's a risk, she likes you but I don't think you'd even trust her. Janet can be fairly unpredictable."

"Maybe we could train them?" Jack said, his voice brightening slightly.

"Pet weevils," Ianto said blandly. He felt Jack press harder against his leg, demanding attention, and also demanding that Ianto make it all better for him. Ianto probably could, if he was up for sex and if Jack remembered who he was. There was no other way to look at it; Ianto was the thing that stood between Jack and his pain, fear, insecurity and total destruction.

It was one hell of a way to look at yourself, Ianto thought. But he knew it; he understood exactly what to do. He had been doing it for months. He looked after Jack; he was even doing his domestic chores. Not because Jack demanded that he did but because Ianto liked it. Bringing Jack's shirts in first thing in the morning, and taking all the washing home at night. Ianto always gathered it up and Jack watched him with a level of indulgence. Because, Ianto thought, Jack was humouring him. He could not have been enjoying watching, Ianto told himself.

"It's worth a try," Toshiko said. They weren't going anywhere; they didn't really have a protocol for releasing weevils back into the wild. If such a thing was possible in the first place.

"Not much of a life for them is it, stuck down here," Jack said again.

Toshiko watched as Ianto looked down at Jack, as utterly stunned as she had been. Jack seemed so worried. It wasn't that he hated weevils exactly, but he usually just treated them like the dangerous animals they were. Ianto looked up and stared at Toshiko, he saw what he was feeling in her eyes too.

Did Jack really care that much, he was usually so ruthless. Just because he knew what he had to do didn't necessarily make him regret it. Toshiko had been in shock after Jack had killed Mary, hardly believing he could do such a thing.

In the interview after Ianto had glossed over several things Jack wanted to know because he knew what Jack had done had shocked her. Ianto had been through it, and he didn't want to put anyone through that. It was a hideous thing to have to live through.

They both looked at each other, understanding what the other was thinking. The moment was only broken by the sound of footsteps in the corridor beyond.

Owen appeared in the doorway and surveyed the scene before him. Toshiko stood a little back from Jack and Ianto. Jack still sat on the floor, leaning against Ianto's leg, peering around him to look at Owen. Ianto stayed where he was, his hand still in Jack's hair. Owen raised his eyebrows but didn't comment on that. Quite frankly what Ianto did with Jack, whether he was compos mentis or not didn't much matter to him. That was for Ianto to worry about, and Jack probably wouldn't care anyway, when he got his memory back.

"Come on then boys, home time," he said.

For some reason Jack still had possession of Ianto's house keys, so he opened the door for Ianto and Owen.

"I don't think I need an escort this far," Ianto said to Owen. Owen looked at him steadily.

"I might as well pick up what I need while I'm here," Owen said. Ianto frowned for a second, wondering what Owen was talking about. The steady look continued and Ianto felt himself blush as he realised what Owen meant.

Ten minutes later, with Jack happily sat watching television with a cup of coffee and a large slice of fruit cake to keep him occupied, Ianto and Owen were in the bathroom. Owen pulled the clear plastic bag complete with the Torchwood logo on it opening it up. He picked the bottles off the shelf in the cabinet one by one. He read the labels of the two at the front and then frowned at each of the other three, peering through the brown plastic to estimate how many of the pills had been used. All of the bottles were less than half full.

Ianto stood there, feeling a little ashamed of himself. He wanted to say something, but he wasn't sure what. Apologise maybe, but Owen never really thought much of apologies, they seemed to be a waste of time to him. Besides Ianto wasn't sure what he could honestly apologise for. Having nightmares, being totally emotionally screwed without Jack to support him or being so ashamed that he didn't dare tell anyone about it.

"I'll test those three, just to be on the safe side."

"Safe side of what?" Ianto asked, slightly alarmed by that comment. Owen winced and shook his head.

"Nothing, just…" he stopped talking knowing saying any more would be beyond tactless. It was a very bad habit of his. He always said more than he should when he was trying to be reassuring. What he wanted to do was test the pills just to make sure they were going to have no adverse affects on Ianto. Something that might not be too obvious but there all the same, Ianto probably had no idea what was really in them, and Owen wanted to know. Ianto nodded, getting the point of what he was saying and trying not to be to too frightened at the thought.

Owen reached into his inside pocket, producing another bottle.

"Replacement sleeping pills, slightly different but probably better over the long term."

"Thanks." Ianto took the bottle and scanned the label. Owen reached into his pocket again. Ianto raised his eyebrows as he produced another bottle.

"Painkillers," Owen said. "I won't bother with any anti-biotics. I gave you a mega dose and the wound looks clean enough, but we'll keep an eye on it. You can probably do without the sling for a bit, just try and minimise your movement on that shoulder."

"Okay, thanks."

Owen put the painkillers in the cabinet; Ianto put the sleeping tablets next to them and shut the door.

"If you need to do anything, especially lifting anything, get Jack to do it. He might as well make himself useful. And you can have the day off tomorrow."

Ianto frowned, "Owen, I'm fine."

"I don't care if you are or not, take a day off. I'll try setting up the Microtron to disperse the energy and I'll spend some time testing it. If I need Jack for anything I'll phone you. I certainly don't need to scan him any more. And quite frankly he's a pain to have in the hub."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I can man the hub overnight."

"Will you be all right?" Ianto said. He knew Jack spent nights there but Jack was… well… Jack. Plus Ianto often kept him company.

"I'm sure I can cope, and no doubt Tosh will hang around, now she's into weevil study mode. Until of course I can think up a suitable insult to annoy her and she'll go home in a huff." Owen grinned. Ianto rolled his eyes.

"You could just tell her to go home you know."

"I do that first, several times," Owen said. "Now and again I just don't waste the effort. Anyway, it won't kill you to have a day off and do… whatever it is you do on your day off."

Ianto opened his mouth and then closed it. It was a little hard for him to ever get time off. In fact Ianto couldn't remember the last full day off he had. If he had any time off he wanted to spend it with Jack, who was at the hub, so inevitably Ianto always ended up there, one way or another. Jack never really took much time off either. It would have sounded incredibly sad to say that out loud, but without even hearing it Owen got the gist.

"Never mind." He glanced at his watch. "I'll get back and start these tests."

"OK, thanks Owen."

Owen gave him a very steady look, then he reached out and briefly gripped Ianto's left shoulder. He turned and headed swiftly down the stairs. Ianto followed along behind him. Owen put his head around the living room door.

"Oi!"

Jack turned, looking a little startled. He had found an episode of The Simpsons and had been avidly watching that when Owen interrupted him, as he licked the last few crumbs of fruit cake off his fingers.

"You can stay with Ianto tomorrow; don't let him do anything strenuous. He can put you to work if needs be."

Ianto rolled his eyes. It wasn't that he was planning to do anything much that would particularly work his shoulder but now he would have Jack hovering over him, taking his carer role very seriously. That was probably why Owen had also said it to Jack, just to be on the safe side.

"Okay," Jack announced. Owen turned to Ianto.

"Do you want me to take that sling off now?"

"Please." Ianto glared at Owen, who smirked as he unknotted the material, knowing exactly what he had done. Ianto glared at him but that made absolutely no impression. Owen folded the sling and handed it to Ianto who took it.

"Don't worry, Jack knows how to put it back on. I showed him how."

"Owen said I was very good!" Jack shouted from the living room. Ianto kept his glare levelled at Owen.

"Did he now?" Ianto asked.

"Yes," Jack said, suddenly sounding confused. "Why?"

Ianto rolled his eyes. Owen's smug smile faded a little and he exhaled and stopped halfway through. That knocked Ianto off his stride, when it occurred to him Owen didn't actually need to breathe.

"If you need anything call, otherwise have a day off, with Jack. That's got to be a first."

It was, the brutal comment made Ianto flinch a little. With Jack you could never have a conventional relationship but now and again it would have been nice to do just silly little everyday things. Owen, for some reason, was giving him the chance.

"I'll call if I come up with anything useful."

"Thanks," Ianto said. Owen's grin returned and he disappeared out of the front door. Ianto stood in the hallway, he moved his arm slightly. It didn't hurt so much now, but the painkillers Owen had given him earlier that afternoon were doing their job, and the ones he had left would carry that on.

And Owen was right, Ianto needed a day off.

"Ianto?"

He spun round and looked at Jack. He hovered in the doorway, his blue eyes nervous.

"Are you all right?" Jack asked when he had Ianto's attention. Ianto smiled. It wasn't Jack's fault, and he had to admit a bit of time with Jack would be nice. Just the two of them, with no other distractions. Ianto smiled and he saw Jack relax.

"I'm fine." He moved his shoulders in the suit slightly and grimaced. "Could you help me get changed? Then we'll get something to eat."

Jack's blue eyes brightened and he smiled, then it faded. "Owen said you shouldn't do anything. Should I cook?"

That had disaster written all over it and Ianto smirked. The thought of Jack let loose in his kitchen was not something he wanted to contemplate. He'd already broken the coffee machine at the hub and Ianto liked his kitchen without a charred décor.

"How about we leave that to the microwave?"

"Okay," Jack said amicably. "Ianto?"

"What?"

"What's a microwave?"


	22. Revelations

Jack ambled into the bedroom after his shower. Ianto rolled his eyes in shock. Naturally, Jack was naked. He had tided up his clothes, putting them in the linen bin as he had left the bathroom and he had done his best approximation of folding the towels up, as he had done the previous night.

He had also peered into the cupboard to find the pill bottles gone, to be replaced by two new ones. That explained to him Owen making him stay downstairs while he and Ianto had gone upstairs. Jack had pouted a little at that, he wasn't an idiot, although they seemed to think so at the moment. Maybe he was an idiot when he was himself. He didn't really know. Perhaps they often didn't tell him things.

Jack didn't know and unless he asked he wouldn't find out.

"Oh!"

Jack smiled as Ianto looked startled and although his eyes dropped briefly he made an effort to keep his gaze on Jack's face.

"Sorry," Jack said, although he didn't sound it.

"Give me a minute; I just need to brush my teeth. I turned the bed down in the other room…. I'll meet you in there," Ianto said. He sidled past Jack, whose eyes narrowed and after a moment he followed Ianto to the bathroom. Again saying to himself, he wasn't an idiot. If he had been before, he didn't remember it.

"What are you doing?" he demanded as he caught Ianto looking at one of the pill bottles. A glass of water sat on the toilet cistern, ready for use.

"I need to take these," Ianto said calmly. Seeing the panic in Jack's eyes he didn't want to make the situation worse.

"Owen gave them to me. Painkillers and sleeping pills." Ianto indicated to the bottles, lifting one after the other. "I won't have a nightmare tonight, promise."

He tried to smile, reassuringly but it faded as he looked at the expression of fury on Jack's face. It was only fleeting but enough to make him pause. A second later Jack's hand snaked out and snatched up the sleeping pills, yanking them out of Ianto's hand and beyond his reach.

"Jack!"

"No!" Jack said firmly, stubbornly. "You don't need them."

"I do, okay Jack. You don't want me to have another nightmare do you? It frightened you last time." Was that emotional blackmail? Ianto wasn't sure, but it was the only thing that he could use.

"You're not going to. I'm going to look after you. I'll stay with you."

Ianto's felt his eyes flicker close for a moment, in panic, and resignation. He understood what Jack was driving at. Although he wasn't doing it for any selfish reasons. In fact, it was probably unselfish. Sex was the last thing on Jack's mind with this call.

"Jack?" Ianto put his hand out to remove the bottle. Jack's jaw clenched and he moved his hand, putting it behind his back. He was blocking the doorway to the bathroom. Ianto knew if it came down to a physical fight, Jack would win. He had muscle, technique and 51st century breeding on his side. The only advantage Ianto had at the moment was the fact that Jack was terrified of hurting him. That would at least make a full on assault easier.

"No!" Jack said again a hint of stubbornness creeping into his voice. "I promised I'd look after you and… I'm not staying in the other room; I'm staying with you… so you don't need these."

His hand came round and he waved the bottle. Ianto tried to snatch for it but Jack again pulled back. He stepped back from the doorway and then again put the bottle behind his back. Jack had managed to put himself at a moderate disadvantage backing up. He had blocked the door previously, which meant Ianto was unable to sneak around him. When he had stepped back he had been forced to move sideways slightly. The stairs down to the lower part of the apartment were directly opposite the bathroom door. He could have almost fallen down them. Ianto had suddenly panicked about that as Jack had moved back, reaching for him, although Jack had assumed he was reaching for the pills.

However, Jack's instinct was still there. So he had also stepped sideways. His right side, by the stairs, was Ianto's best place of attack. Not only would Jack not want to hurt him, he wouldn't want to risk him falling down the stairs.

What the hell are you doing! Ianto's mind roared at him. Jack wanted to get into bed with him. Something Ianto never worried about usually. Even when it had been a hectic day if Jack was scheduled to stay with Ianto, he appeared. Sometimes late. Too late, Ianto could have already taken a pill on an unscheduled day. But unless there was an emergency Jack just shed his clothes and clambered into bed with him, holding him whatever. If there was an emergency and he had to leave, without waking Ianto, he did so. But Ianto always knew he was there. There was never any mistaking Jack's musky scent on the sheets.

This Jack didn't understand that the contact with Ianto, while he was asleep, didn't need to be constant. Jack could be there when he fell asleep and leave after an hour, or if was wasn't there at that point, coming in a little later and curling up with him helped. Jack often did that. He would stay with Ianto while he went to sleep and then would leave.

He did that when they were at the hub. Ianto, as he thought now, realised Jack stayed when they were here in his house. The place that never quite seemed like home, no matter what he did to it. It was just somewhere to store things really. Jack was based at the hub and Ianto just followed; wanting to be there with him. It hurt, physically, now and again, to be without Jack.

Jack, now, stayed absolutely still. His arm still behind his back and Ianto saw the set of his jaw. There was no way Jack was giving in.

"Jack, come on."

"NO!" Jack said again, stubborn against Ianto's attempt to be reasonable. "You don't need to take them I'm staying with you."

As he spoke Jack's shoulders shook, emphasising the meaning behind his words, the pill bottle rattled violently. Jack eyes widened, he almost jumped at the sound.

"It's all right Jack," Ianto said, wanting to soothe him a little. Unsure now, what he should do.

Jack gazed for a moment then he held his hand out, offering the bottle back to Ianto. Ianto took it, suddenly shocked, so shocked that for a moment he didn't know what to do with it. Slowly and carefully he put it on the shelf in the cabinet. Jack watched the moment, seeing the fact that it wasn't going next to the painkillers, ready to be taken.

"I'll be good." Jack promised, as he had done when he had dressed Ianto in the washroom of the hub.

It occurred to Ianto that he was probably going to need help with his pyjamas again. He sighed slightly, it wasn't that he was worried about Jack's behaviour; it was his own that was bothering him. It was definitely immoral to take advantage of Jack but Ianto was finding it harder to resist. And Jack was certainly not backwards about the fact he wanted Ianto.

"Okay, I need to take these though, and brush my teeth. And you can put those tracksuit bottoms on."

Jack pouted, "I don't want to they're too hot."

Ianto had to admit his pyjamas were probably the same. Jack radiated out body heat like a furnace. Probably down to his 51st century pheromones, Ianto thought wryly

"Okay, I'll find you something else, which you are wearing," Ianto told him sternly.

Jack grinned and looked down at himself, "why? What are you worried about?"

"Just humour me Jack please," Ianto said. Jack shrugged. He wasn't that bothered if he had to wear something in bed or not. It felt strange to him, and he guessed that normally he didn't. But as he sensed Ianto's discomfort at the thought he didn't think it was worth making a fuss over. He had achieved his main objective of getting into bed with him. So then at least he wouldn't be worried about him having a nightmare.

"Go on, I'll be there in a minute."

Jack narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at the open cabinet and the pill bottle sat innocuously on the shelf.

"You're not going to take any are you? Without me seeing."

Ianto gaped at him. He wasn't that devious. In fact that hadn't actually occurred to him. It really should of. Although it was so automatic now, his honesty, that he didn't think about it. Lying to and deceiving Jack were two things he never did. At least not anymore.

"Jack!"

Ianto sounded so shocked that Jack's face flushed in horror. For a moment he was speechless. Ianto couldn't really comfort him, in fact, he felt a little angry at that. Although it wasn't Jack's fault, he was used to now just speaking his mind, in utter innocence.

"But you've been doing things and talking about me. Owen said it wasn't nice!"

"When did he say that?" Ianto snapped.

Jack bit down on his lower lip, He drew it into his mouth for a moment as he thought. Ianto watched the nervous, upset reaction. "When he told me that I shouldn't tell you about telling him about the pills. He said you'd be upset."

Ianto took a breath. He knew that Jack had told Owen. He didn't know that Owen had said that though. Ianto smiled, calming his panic and anger a little.

"No Jack, I promise I won't take the sleeping pills. Good enough for you?"

"Yes," Jack said.

"Go on, I won't be long."

Jack smiled nervously but did as he was asked and disappeared off into Ianto's bedroom, while Ianto took his pain killers and brushed his teeth. His arm was feeling better now, the strain in his shoulder had improved but the grip of his right hand was still lacking.

Still he could manage well enough using his left. He wasn't particularly ambidextrous but after the last day he had become a little more competent. There were still certain things that Jack had to help him with. He had aided him getting out his suit earlier on, and dressed him in his tracksuit bottoms and a tee-shirt. And he had insisted on setting everything up for dinner.

As it was only a microwave lasagne it was simple enough. Jack had stabbed the plastic film with enthusiastic gusto and had watched fascinated as it had cooked in the microwave. Then, as Ianto had supervised, Jack had done all the work. There were a few other chores that Ianto could have done, the washing and ironing were still waiting to be dealt with, but he just couldn't be bothered. If they were having a day off tomorrow, they wouldn't need anything in particular anyway.

One handed Ianto got out of his tracksuit bottoms and then carefully out of his tee-shirt. As he left the bathroom he dumped them in the linen bin and went into the bedroom. He had kept his eye on the bedroom door, wondering if Jack was somehow looking at him but Ianto didn't want to start being that paranoid. He couldn't see any evidence of that anyway.

Jack was already nestled in the bed, the duvet pulled up over his groin, at least maintaining some level of discretion. He looked at Ianto in the heart covered boxer shorts.

"I like them," he said again. Ianto smiled. They were comfortable enough to sleep in he decided, but he went to the drawers and rummaged in another to find a larger pair. Not quite as entertaining as his own they were of a dark tartan pattern. He lobbed them at Jack.

"Put them on."

Jack pouted again but pushed the duvet down to do as he was told. Ianto watched him as he covered himself up and then he moved in the bed, sitting on one side and moving the duvet on the other so Ianto could get in. He clambered in, having to lie on his left side to protect his shoulder. Jack settled down behind him and Ianto wasn't the least bit surprised when Jack snuggled close to him, spooning behind him. He slid an arm around Ianto's waist, hugging him close.

Ianto smiled, feeling Jack's body press against him. He moved his left hand up to meet Jack's and their fingers laced together. Behind him Jack made a low sound of contentment. He could feel Jack harden slightly, his cock pressing against Ianto's backside. But Jack made no move. It was like he was hardly aware of what his body was doing, that or he was so used to the reaction he could easily dismiss it.

Often he would have done something. Pressing against Ianto, rubbing against him, teasing him enough to entice him, but Jack didn't do that. Instead he just settled down, snuggling against Ianto, not just to comfort him but because Jack wanted comfort as well. Ianto winced and reached out his sore arm.

"What's the matter?" Jack demanded.

"I need to turn the light off."

"Oh," Jack said. He stopped pressing against him quite so hard and Ianto turned the light off, plunging the room into darkness. The street lights gave of something and now and again as a car passed the ceiling flickered with lights. Ianto pressed his right shoulder back against Jack letting him take the weight of his body. He didn't want to roll onto it. He needed to lie back against Jack to prevent it.

For a moment they both fidgeted and then they settled. Ianto lay back into Jack's arms their hands entwined and he didn't doubt that Jack would stop him rolling onto his sore right shoulder, keeping him laid on his left. Ianto closed his eyes, he was tired, he wanted to go to sleep. With Jack's arms curled around him, his body pressed up against his back, giving off the warmth that Ianto was used to, he felt himself relax.

"Ianto?" Jack broke the silence after a few minutes.

"Yes, Jack," Ianto murmured, not expecting at this stage to hear anything too stressful.

"Do you love me?"

Ianto's eyes snapped open. Thankfully his body stayed calm. Pressed into Jack's physical presence he would always be so, but his mind raced. He stared at the dark shadow of the curtains that covered his window. A car raced by, the engine revving violently, but there was no lights, someone passing by didn't want to be seen.

"Jack?"

Jack moved against him slightly, his hips pressing in harder as he rose up on his elbow to look down at Ianto. He was still only half erect, his body's sexual reaction still so unconscious that it didn't totally manifest.

"Well, do you?"

Ianto turned a little, and his shoulder started to throb and he thought better of it. He wasn't quite sure how to answer. There was honesty, evasiveness and a downright lie, three answers. Which could he give?

"Why are you asking that now?"

Jack paused, his hand tightened around Ianto's. Insecurity, Ianto thought, that's why is asking.

"I think I love you. I love you, don't I?"

"Yes, of course you do. And Gwen and Tosh and Owen."

Spreading the responsibility wasn't really the way that Ianto wanted to go but he didn't know what else to do. Jack would never push such an issue but Ianto remembered the confrontation they had when Jack returned. Gwen had shouted at him and Ianto… oh he had felt so relived he was literally weak at the knees, light-headed and sick all in one move. Jack had looked at him directly, at first, saying he had come back for him. Then all of them. Ianto hadn't known what to think and then Jack later on had asked him out on a date. That had made it even more confusing. But he knew how he felt; it was just too scary telling Jack; after all that.

"But do you? I love you."

That would have been music to Ianto's ears but Jack was hardly in a state to truly comment.

"At this moment in time you've only known me two days."

Jack tensed and Ianto felt Jack's body shift away from him slightly. He was close to panic as he felt that but Jack came back to him again, settling down against him.

"So? After those two days, I love you. So do you…. love me?"

Jack could remember this, he might not; he might never get his memory back, Ianto thought. But he had never had a better time to say it. His hand tightened on Jack's.

"Yes Jack, I love you."

It was utterly heartfelt, and totally true. Jack snuggled closer to him and his lips pressed against the back of Ianto's neck. Ianto closed his eyes and relaxed. Jack said nothing else he cradled Ianto gently, listening to the sound of his breathing as he went to sleep, and Jack, as always, was never far behind him.

Ianto couldn't sleep peacefully without Jack. It never occurred to him that Jack could never truly rest, unless he had Ianto curled up peacefully, next to him.


	23. A Good Idea

Ianto knew Jack was fed up. His body language was screaming it. Jack didn't like it, staying in the house. He had tried it once, when Ianto had the weekend off. Jack couldn't really be faulted for the effort he had put in, in trying to stay still, to be with Ianto. But Jack was far too active to tolerate it.

As Ianto went into the kitchen he opened the door to the utility room. It was full of ironing that needed doing and the washing was something else that needed to be dealt with. Ianto didn't feel much in the mood for it, and he guessed that Jack would be less than thrilled with his choice of activity. Getting him to have a shave that morning had been difficult enough work, never mind washing his clothes.

Ianto turned as there was a thunder of feet. For some reason Jack couldn't manage to be quiet moving around the flat. He came down the stairs, attempting to fasten his braces at the same time. It was only as he paused in the kitchen doorway that he actually managed to fasten them properly, then he straightened them on his shoulders.

"Whatcha doin'?" he asked Ianto, looking at him suspiciously.

"Nothing," Ianto said truthfully. He felt too lazy to do anything. Jack pouted slightly and frowned.

"Can we go out and do something?" Jack asked.

"Like what?"

"I don't know!" Jack said in exasperation. "What do I like to do?"

Shoot aliens, flirt and shag, Ianto thought in his head. But then again Jack did all that at work, so they probably didn't count as hobbies. Hobbies would probably include use of the Torchwood firing range, eating an inordinate amount of junk food and Ianto. He had often, in angry moments wondered if Jack did see him that way. Maybe not, Ianto thought, as he looked at Jack now, expression very serious while he waited for Ianto to answer.

His frown deepened as Ianto pondered an answer.

"I'm…" Ianto started, seeing the expression. "… not really sure."

"How can you not be sure?" Jack asked baffled. "What do we normally do?"

"Work."

"What all the time? That sounds boring."

It did, but somehow work was never boring. Not with Jack around. Ianto smiled. If there wasn't anything Jack could think of then Ianto could probably think up some ideas. He had never really had chance to spend time with Jack out of Torchwood parameters.

That was something about Jack that had always seemed odd. He enjoyed seeing, with an almost childlike delight, many of the everyday things that people did. He would watch them with fascination, joke about them, and they seemed to be the main thing that kept him at Torchwood. Because it was something he wanted to protect.

On the flip side, he never seemed to want to get involved. Jack always seemed to be a step back from all those everyday mundane things. Not because he didn't like them, his interest was obvious. But it was like he didn't seem to think he was a part of it, or maybe his time like that was long gone.

Without his memories, he didn't know where he was, or how he really felt. Despite what he had said last night, Ianto took that as insecurity rather than him really knowing it, and most importantly understanding it.

"Can we go out?" Jack asked, even getting bored of waiting for Ianto to answer. "Please?"

Ianto smiled. It was, he conceded the perfect chance for him. Jack had never followed up on the promise of a date. After he had come back there had never been much time for it. He hadn't forgotten he'd said it. A time or two, usually when they were in the middle of another disaster Jack had pointed out he still needed to take Ianto out.

For a few weeks Ianto had held out on sleeping with Jack again. One reason was to simply to try and force that issue, and because he wanted to punish Jack. But after Toshiko had taken Tommy home with her that night, because she knew it would be their last night together Ianto couldn't hold back any longer.

It was hard for him to be around Jack without that contact. He was a little addictive. Plus his memory had kept replaying Jack's confession that he had come back for him. And Ianto was too frightened to hold back anymore, in case Jack saw his reticence as a sign of rejection. And that would subsequently push Jack into leaving again, one thing that Ianto didn't want. They had never actually spoken about it, but Ianto had the feeling that Jack had understood how he had felt.

"Okay," Ianto said. For a moment he floundered, wondering what the hell they could do. Going to see a film was one idea but Ianto didn't want to just sit in the dark and not really talk and for some reason he felt nervous of taking Jack out for a meal somewhere.

He was out of practice here. With Lisa it had been easy, they had done odd, funny impulsive things, mainly at her insistence. Camping, travelling and… Ianto paused and smirked. One simple idea sprang to mind. It was easy, needed very little planning and all he needed was to stop at the shops for a few things.

"Come on then, I need to get changed first," Ianto said as he looked down at his tracksuit bottoms and very old white tee-shirt.

"Do you need help?" Jack asked eagerly. Ianto looked up again. Jack's face was bright, probably not at the idea of dressing Ianto. That was now just a practicality, but at the idea of going out.

"Possibly, but we'd better put my arm in the sling again, just in case."

"Okay," Jack's grinned brightly. His energy level just suddenly seemed to increase tenfold. Ianto wouldn't have been surprised if Jack started to drag him upstairs to get him to hurry up. Instead he stood there expectantly, his eyes bright, expression hopeful. Very much like a child who had been promised a treat.

"Where are we going?"

Ianto grinned. "That's a surprise."

Jack grinned more.

Patience and anticipation were not easy things for Jack Harkness, and it still showed.

"So where are we going?"

"I told you," Ianto said, indulging in the game. "It's a surprise."

He wondered if he wasn't making more of this than he should. Without really thinking about it, he had picked his clothes carefully. His dark jeans, tight enough to keep Jack's eyes trailing down to his backside, a blue tee-shirt that matched his eyes and his warm, comfortable but very flattering leather jacket. Jack had got him into his clothes in record time. Ianto could manage enough of it himself, but Jack dealt with the rest.

Now he was trailing after Ianto, dressed as he usually was his coat lifting in the light breeze. Fortunately the day was turning out a little better than the last couple of days. In fact it was almost pleasant, the sky was blue, the sun shining and the temperature had risen.

"Can you give me a hint?"

"I could," Ianto said thoughtfully as he paused at a crossing and pushed the button. Completely unconsciously he reached out to take Jack's arm to make sure he didn't wander into the traffic. It wasn't that he had lost his common sense, but with his tendency to fidget and since he wasn't paying attention to anything else but Ianto himself, he decided not to take chances.

"But I won't." Ianto smiled at him. As the lights changed and the green man flashed up Ianto walked across pulling Jack along with him. Jack stayed with him, avoiding the other pedestrians walking the other way easily. Then as he reached the other side his demeanour suddenly changed, as they moved into the slightly busier crowds near the supermarket.

He shrugged off Ianto's controlling hand and moved to the other side. Ianto's arm was back in its sling, expertly done by Jack. There was no way even Owen could fault the job. But now Jack remembered his responsibility. He moved to Ianto's right and took his position as bodyguard.

Ianto smiled at Jack's very serious face. Jack looked at him.

"So where are we going then?"

Ianto smiled and leant in a little closer to Jack. Jack watched, moving slightly so Ianto's couldn't press his damaged shoulder and arm against him. But their faces were no more than a few centimetres apart.

"Jack?"

"Yes," Jack said brightly.

"I'm not telling."

And then in front of everyone Ianto planted a quick, light, but very heartfelt kiss on Jack's lips.

"Now come on."


	24. New Friends

Ianto sat back against the tree. The weather was holding, the sky staying blue despite the clouds gathering on the horizon. It would rain later, Ianto guessed, but he reckoned they still had a good couple of hours. It was still warm, with some fluffy white clouds roaming across the sky above, followed by the thick black rain clouds. The sun however, remained uncovered.

The park was quite busy, with people passing through but the lunchtime rush had disappeared. Several people in suits, shop girls in uniform and groups of what looked to be students had all come out to enjoy the sunshine.

As he watched them bolt their food, with only an hour or so to sit there and enjoy, it Ianto had felt rather smug. He and Jack didn't need to rush. They had all the time in the world. Unless of course it came under threat.

He had walked a little further into the park, with Jack complaining a little, since he was carrying all the supplies they had picked up. But Ianto had found a fairly secluded spot near the pond. Which was perfect for what he wanted.

They had set up in the shade of a sprawling tree, laying down the plastic sheet he had thought to buy, since the grass was still damp. The remains of the picnic, some sandwiches, punnets of ready cut fruit and a chocolate cake that Jack, on spotting it, demanded they buy, lay on the sheet next to him. Jack had eaten half of the cake in almost one go. The other half still sat there. The plastic knife used to cut it lay on the plate next to it.

Ianto was debating the logistics of getting it back into the box to take home while he kept an eye on Jack. He smiled as he watched him. Jack was a few yards away, crouched down, throwing breadcrumbs to a group of ducks. There were three Mallards, two males and one female in the group. Jack was breaking up and throwing the remains of one of the sandwiches at them and taking great delight in it.

The sight was comical but rather sweet. Ianto watched with a level of indulgent amusement but it faded as the inside pocket of his jacket vibrated. He scrabbled into the pocket to answer it before it rang loudly. Ianto didn't want to scare Jack's new friends.

"Hello?"

"You're not at home!" Owen snapped.

"No, we decided to go out," Ianto said.

"I thought you were supposed to be resting."

Ianto debated his position. Laid back against the tree, stuffed full of sandwiches and fruit, watching the world go by in a very pleasant fashion, with the sun filtering through the trees. Yeah, Ianto would, he decided, call that resting.

"I am, I'm having a day off, doing day off things."

"Such as what? Tosh is tracking your mobile. You're in the park."

"Yes, I am," Ianto said. Owen didn't even bother to breath down the phone. All Ianto got was utter silence. He waited still watching Jack. Instead of throwing the bread he had put a few crumbs on his hand, on the tips of his fingers. He held out it out, trying to coax the ducks to come and eat off his hand.

Ianto watched the fattest male. Obviously the dominant and clearly the one that assessed these situations first. The female lagged behind but the male had, after Ianto had thrown the first few crumbs come up the bank quacking at them. Therefore he had sparked Jack's interest. Now Jack was challenging that male back.

He arched his neck, flapping his wings a little and he waddled up further. Sensing the nerves, Jack leant forward, stretching his hand out towards them.

"What the hell are you doing?" Owen demanded.

"Having a picnic," Ianto said blithely. He could not exactly hear the surprise in Owen but Ianto sensed it. Owen was completely off his stride.

"Did you say a picnic?"

"Yes."

"Oh," Owen said. "Is Jack all right?"

Ianto smirked. It was on the tip of his tongue to say that their esteemed leader was now kneeling on the damp, muddy ground – Ianto would have to soak Jack's trousers overnight – leaning forward as the lead male mallard darted forward and started to eat up the crumbs on Jack's hand. As he finished he waddled back to the female, fluffing his feathers and looking quite proud of himself.

Ianto could have told him. He could have really shamed Jack by his display of childlike delight but Ianto didn't want to do that. It was not because he wanted to protect Jack's dignity. That was probably long gone. It was rather that Ianto wanted to keep the moment to himself. So he was the only one that would remember Jack as he truly was, taking delight in a simple human joy.

Jack didn't often do that. Ianto hadn't really realised it until now, that Jack was scared to. His knowledge, his insecurity contributed to that. In his own way, Jack was fearless; he stood there and protected the planet, sacrificing himself without thought. But his own life, his own personal life, he was terrified of. That was why he loved to see human life, but thought he could never be a part of it.

Ianto smiled sadly. It really didn't need to be that way for him. However much loss he seemed to take, Jack didn't need to feel that he had to hide.

Jack turned to smile at Ianto. But he frowned as he realised he was talking on the phone.

'Owen,' Ianto mouthed silently at Jack. Jack frowned further.

"Tell him to go away!" Jack yelled. He set up a few more crumbs and sat down, taking no notice of how damp the grass still was. He held out his hand and the male, with the female in tow moved closer. The last, smaller male hung back.

"Jack says hi," Ianto said.

"I did not!" Jack yelled in outrage, turning back to glare at him. The ducks scattered slightly.

The male duck flapped his disapproval at the whole affair. He waddled away, stalked the smaller male slightly making him run away, corralled the group and then he waddled back to Jack, flapping his wings before he tucked himself back together again, diving to snatch the crumbs off his hand.

"Well, you can tell Jack to drop dead," Owen said back.

"Owen says hi," Ianto said to Jack.

"I did not!" Owen snapped.

"Bet he didn't." Jack stuck his tongue out at Ianto, who smiled. The duck honked to get Jack's attention. Ianto looked at the other male, hanging back, whereas the female moved up with the more confident male. Ianto pulled a few crumbs of his own sandwich and lobbed them a little away from Jack. The smaller male saw it and ran, gobbling up the feeble crumbs that Ianto offered. He threw some more.

"You all right though?" Owen asked. "… and Jack?" he added as an afterthought.

"Fine, I hardly think slobbing about in a park means I am going exert myself much."

"How's the arm feel?"

Ianto rolled his shoulder slightly. It was a little difficult, Jack had made a damn good job of the sling, and making sure it was bound as tight as Owen had wanted it, when he had shown him.

"Better. It's not hurting as much. The shoulder is definitely better."

"Is the dressing holding?"

"Yep, I got Jack to put it in a sling before we went out, as a precaution."

"Precaution?"

Ianto shrugged slightly and threw a few more crumbs for the smaller male. That one was getting more confident as well, it was only a foot or so away from him now. It had left it's two other friends to Jack.

"Just makes the injury more obvious, so people are less likely to attempt to knock me. That and my bodyguard mean that I'm pretty safe."

"Fine," Owen said.

"Do you need us back at the hub?"

"No, I was actually just phoning to…" Owen paused, taking an imaginary breath. "Check you were both all right."

"We're fine," Ianto said.

"Okay then." Ianto heard Owen pause, unsure how to end the conversation.

"Do you need us to come in for anything?" Ianto asked.

"No, not at the moment. We can't actually find out anything more than what we already know and that… well for the moment doesn't tell us anything." Owen paused. Ianto waited.

"Sorry, I just wanted to check everything was all right."

"It's fine. You told us to take a day off, so I did. Do you really honestly think I could keep Jack cooped up in the flat?"

"No," Owen said. Sounding a little embarrassed as he spoke.

"Okay. Don't worry about us. We're fine. If we need you we'll call; and I presume vice versa?"

"Yeah," Owen said and hung up. Ianto smiled.

In the hub Owen frowned as he put away his phone. Toshiko and Gwen were working away. Gwen had been dealing with the paperwork still. Toshiko looked at the readings.

"Are they all right?" Gwen asked. She frowned as she stood on the threshold of Jack's office.

"Yeah," Owen said. "They're having a picnic."

He didn't get the laughter he expected. What he got was two delighted looks.

"That's nice," Toshiko said. Gwen smiled.

"Jack did promise to take Ianto out on a date."

"Well, I hate to point it out but this is Ianto taking Jack out on a date."

"What's the difference?" Gwen asked.

"Jack asked and hasn't delivered. What if he doesn't remember what happened over the last few days… we can't count it as anything important," Owen said.

"Owen!" Toshiko looked up from what she was doing. She was wearing a set of magnifying glasses; they made her eyes look huge. She had pretty eyes. Owen had always thought that.

"Sorry!" He said in response, holding up his hands. "We don't know what to expect here. Track them, wherever they go. They need an eye keeping on them. Can we find then on CCTV?"

"Done that," Gwen said sharply. "But where they are now is out of range. We just have them walking through the park."

"Look, I'm not being funny but, Jack isn't Jack, as much as you would all like to think it. And we have to look out for something coming up to bite us on the arse."

"That or," Gwen said. "We really are looking at Jack, but we still have to look out for something that might jump up and bite us in the arse."

Toshiko looked up again, raising her glasses. "I go with Gwen."

And that ended the discussion.


	25. An Unscheduled Stop

"So where do we go now?" Jack asked as he helped pack up.

Home," Ianto said. Jack's face dropped in disappointment. He put the chocolate cake back carefully as Ianto had instructed into the box and then into a bag. Perhaps they could take it to the hub on the way home. Let them eat some of it, Ianto thought.

"Can't we go somewhere else?"

Ianto looked up at Jack. His trousers were damp, covered in mud, but were now hidden by his coat, which he had carefully kept clean.

"Like where?"

Jack sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Yes, sorry, you don't know…. I just keep automatically asking."

"So can we do something else? It's only…" Jack looked at his watch, frowning as he carefully worked out the time. He had learnt enough numbers now to do so. "Three thirty," he said proudly.

Ianto gaped again, desperately thinking. Again the idea of the cinema sprung to mind but he didn't trust this version of Jack to sit still, or stay quiet. Jack watched him hopefully. What the devil could he do? Ianto thought to himself. He was very much inclined to indulge Jack but he couldn't really think of anything. If he had a day off, he would probably have just done some chores and perhaps gone out and caught up on the birthday present shopping he needed to do for some friends and family and Jack needed a new blue shirt, he had been complaining about the cuffs fraying on the one he had.

Shopping wasn't the most exciting thing in the world. Still, Ianto would have worried if it was Jack, with his memory, but this Jack would probably enjoy anything. It was all so new.

"Well, I need to, get some shopping."

"We did shopping," Jack pointed out, looking down at the carrier bag he had of leftover food.

"Not that kind of shopping, this is more fun."

Jack frowned a little uncertain. Ianto shrugged. "Or… we could…"

He watched Jack's face flit with a look of slight panic. "We can go shopping," he said swiftly. Ianto smiled.

"Jack, don't panic, let's take a walk about and we'll think of something."

"Okay," Jack gave a rueful smile. He gathered up the bag that held the remains of the picnic. Ianto didn't really want to carry it around, but he didn't want to dispose of it, wasting the food. He got his answer as they left the park where a cluster of tramps rummaged around the bins.

"Hey," Ianto said. He held his hand out to Jack to get him to pass over the bag of food. The four men stared at him suspiciously. Ianto handed over the bag.

"Careful of the chocolate cake, it's kind of melted a little."

"Thanks! Hey Ianto, didn't realise it was you." the guy looking into the bag said.

"Oh God! Hi just thought you were around the Plass."

"No, here to," the tramp nodded knowledgeably.

He looked up at his mates they stared in the bag and then looked at Ianto with a kind of awe. At his thought, at his consideration. They mostly had to look for what was put in the bin and many people saw them looking. Never once had someone walked up and offered them what would be leftovers. They would often rather put it in the bin for them to find. Ianto walked back to Jack, who was watching carefully.

"That was nice."

"Yes, I know him from the Quay, they must move around a bit. I always give him the leftovers from the hub."

Jack followed Ianto up into the main area of town. "Don't people look after them… like properly."

"They don't have anyone to do that." Ianto said. He stopped when he realised as he stepped into the gift shop he had lost Jack. "Jack?"

Ianto turned; thankfully Jack was a little hard to miss in the run of people on the street since he was tall and dressed rather distinctively. He had paused to watch the people passing by but as Ianto called him, Jack hurried along behind to catch up. He followed Ianto as he looked at rows of cards with pictures. Ianto pulled a few out, looked at them, forgetting Jack hovering beside him, until Jack drew his attention.

"That's won't happen to me will it?"

"How? When? What?" Ianto asked. He looked up from a cutesy picture that might suit Laura's daughter to look at Jack.

"Being there. Just forgotten by someone. You won't forget me, will you Ianto?"

"No. I thought we had had this conversation."

"Sorry."

"Why do you worry about it so much?" Ianto asked. He paused in the middle of the card shop and looked at Jack. He didn't raise his voice, he didn't make a scene, so neither would Jack. Instead Jack would hopefully answer. He paused, scuffed his feet on the non-descript beige carpet and then looked up at Ianto.

"About what?"

"About people leaving you?" Ianto asked. "What scares you?"

"I don't know," Jack snapped. "I don't. I just know I'm going to be all on my own." Jack faced tensed slightly and Ianto reached out to take his arm.

"I'm sorry, okay. I just need to get these cards and then we can go and get you a new shirt."

Jack stopped worrying about his fear off loss. Instead he looked down at his clothes. "Why what's wrong with this one?"

"Nothing," Ianto said. "Your blue one is a little worn, you've been whinging about it for ages. Come on, we'll get you a new one."

Two hours later Jack carried the packages. Although he kept complaining the bags were heavy, as he had done with the food, he wouldn't let Ianto carry a damn thing. And he was still lingering on Ianto's right side to protect his arm. Although he was being slightly less zealous now.

"I like this," he said.

Ianto guessed that Jack would have liked it if they had paused to watch the paint dry on the side of a house, if Ianto had wanted to see it. Jack had no way to measure whether or not he enjoyed things. He was just enjoying being with Ianto.

"But my legs are tired," Jack added. Ianto looked at him in mild amusement. Tiredness was never something that Jack complained about but as they passed by a pub, a faint spill of music coming through the door Jack peered in curiously. He'd done that with practically every shop they had passed, which made walking down the High Street a rather long affair. Not that Ianto minded, he had picked up more than he had actually needed and he was inclined to agree with Jack. He was a bit tired as well, the painkillers were wearing off a little.

"Come on," Ianto said. He turned into the small alcove of the pub door. "We can stop for a sit down and a drink before we go home."

"Okay," Jack said mildly. He just trotted in after Ianto, peering around the slightly dark interior of the pub. It was one that they had all been in several times, it was close enough to the hub to make it convenient.

Ianto had a quick glance around. It was still early, not quite half past five. The offices still hadn't spilled out the workers looking for an early evening pick me up. Ianto spotted a quiet corner, a little dark, the overhead lights dimmed, but Ianto didn't think Jack would bother about that. He got Jack settled in the corner with the bags and then walked over to the bar.

"What can I get you?" the very bored barman asked.

"Pint of lager and…" Ianto paused. The barman started on that drink as Ianto thought. Jack normally drank water but under the circumstances he probably wouldn't want that. "Could you make that two actually?"

"Sure," the barman said, not very interested in Ianto's hesitation, or why he was now looking a little worried. There had to be reasons why Jack didn't drink, his rather mysterious answer that he had to stay hydrated in case he had to travel in a hurry didn't really tell anyone anything. Until the time he had run off on them, and it wasn't like he never drank anything. He had whiskey and brandy in his office for emergencies, but he very rarely touched that either.

While he debated the morals of what he was doing he ferried the first drink over to the table. Jack watched him in a very serious fashion, Ianto smiled at him and then went back to pay for the drinks and pick up the other pint. When he returned Jack was examining the pint of lager from all sides and sniffing it a little.

"What is it?"

"Lager," Ianto said, he took a sip of his own drink. Jack still hesitated.

"Do I like it?" Jack asked. He looked up with a set of perfectly innocent, curious blue eyes.

"I have no idea," Ianto told him truthfully. "You never really drink much, I could get you some water instead." Maybe you should have done in the first place, a voice in Ianto's head told him. Jack frowned and took a tentative sip of the drink, then a slightly larger one. His eyes moved in his head as he tasted it.

"It's nice," Jack said.

"Good, don't drink it too fast though, I don't want you falling over as I am in no state to carry you home."

Jack just looked confused at that but he obeyed the command. In fact as Ianto watched him, he actually measured his speed against him. Ianto didn't feel like drinking too fast, he didn't want to have any adverse reactions with the pain killers and anti-biotic that he had taken.

"Did you enjoy it today?" Ianto asked him. Jack nodded. He looked down at the bags he had tucked away under the table.

"Why did you buy all that stuff?"

Ianto shrugged, "I keep forgetting people's birthdays, well not forgetting but sometimes I can't always get out to buy things, so I always try and do it well in advance. Which reminds me, I had better think of something to get Tosh soon."

"Do I buy things like that?"

"Sometimes, you usually get me to do it."

"Why? Can't I do it?"

"I guess, but it's easier if I do. It's…" Ianto paused and thought about it. It wasn't that Jack never thought about these things, and he loved all the odd little customs that went on around him. But there somehow seemed to be a slight lack of comprehension of what to get and why. Jack had been on Earth long enough that he really should have figured it out.

And he knew everyone well enough, yet the simple little details he could never seem to manage. Ianto smiled and shook his head.

"I'm just better at shopping than you are," Ianto said. Jack smiled and took another sip of his drink. They had almost finished the drinks Ianto swallowed the rest of his and looked at Jack.

"Do you want another?"

Jack looked around, took another sip, thought about it and nodded. "Yes, please."

By the end of the second drink Jack was blinking a little more intensely than he had been before. His hand had slid over to Ianto's thigh and had been sliding steadily upwards throughout the last pint. The pub had filled a little, a steady stream of office girls and men in suits. It was starting to get a little rowdy and Ianto was starting to get a little fed up of the group of men by the bar, steadily drinking and getting increasingly noisy.

"Shall we go?" Ianto leant in towards Jack to ask. Jack didn't look too happy with the noise and crowds either. That was probably why he was shifting closer to Ianto and why the grip Jack had on his leg was getting stronger.

"Yes, please," Jack voice was a little slurred and he blinked vigorously. "I need to pee first."

"Okay, over there. Do you want me to come with you?" Ianto asked. Jack, for just one fraction of a second, smiled in a way that Ianto was more than familiar with. The innocence dropped out of his eyes and they glittered with amusement.

"I think I can manage that on my own."

"Go on then," Ianto said feeling the blush run up his face. He had spent two days treating Jack like an overgrown child. Moments like this, throughout that time, reminded him he wasn't. Jack got up, wavered on his feet a little and then clambered out to saunter along the bar to the toilets. Ianto watched carefully, he was still fairly steady but it was clear the alcohol had quite an effect on him. It had never occurred to Ianto that Jack actually avoided drinking because he simply couldn't handle it.

As Jack walked along Ianto noticed two groups of girls watching him walk past. So did the group of suited men. However as they also watched the girls one of their number glanced in Ianto's direction and then commented to his friends, which caused a rumble of noisy laughter. Ianto sat back in the seat and spun his almost empty glass round, pretending that he didn't know they were talking about him and also that it didn't bother him. It didn't, he told himself, and it wouldn't if Jack was himself. Jack had a way of handling every situation like this, usually by flirting. Ianto had never met anyone who could literally flirt someone into submission but Jack certainly could.

He could take one innocent, almost innocent, innuendo and turn it into an indirect threat in a matter of seconds. Ianto now and again wondered if it was some kind of defence mechanism, but defence against what?

The yelp made him look up again. One of the group had grabbed a passing girl practically pinning her to the bar and one hand firmly clamped on her backside. She looked less than pleased about it, trying to wriggle away. Ianto watched her companion, another girl in a blouse and short skirt. She looked like she wanted to help but didn't want to get grabbed. Both girls had unconsciously swept the bar for help but everyone looked away, not wanting to take on the group of six men, not even the barman looked interested. Ianto sighed inwardly as the girl being groped caught his eye frantically.

That was the problem he had, being who he was, and having spent an awful lot of time with one Captain Jack Harkness. You couldn't just ignore these things, he couldn't do it and Jack certainly wouldn't. Even without his memory he would probably still get involved.

Slowly Ianto got up. He noticed one of the men spot the movement and watch his approach. When he was close enough for all six men to realise he was there he spoke.

"Enough, leave her alone."

"What's it got to do with you?" the groping man asked. The girl had gone very still, leaning back slightly away from his attempt to kiss her. She had either not noticed, or didn't care, that her long dark hair was trailing in the condensation and spilt beer on the bar.

"She quite obviously doesn't want your attention," Ianto pointed out.

"It's not like your interested is it?" he said looking around at the group. They all laughed, the hint obvious, they had spotted Jack's lingering closeness to him. Although in the darkness they had probably not been able to see the possessive hand on his leg.

Ianto however at some point between getting up from the table and actually reaching the group, had lost his fear. It was the thing that he had pointed out to Tosh once, when they were trapped by a group of cannibals. The feeling that they got, the look on their faces when everything was so out of control. At that point in time, as he stood there, he realised he was starting to feel exactly the same way. So this time the laugher, and the meaning, had no effect on him.

Instead he just stood there and for a moment said nothing. His face said it all and the fact he simply waited for the laughter to run it's course all seemed to confuse them. At that point he took his moment stepping a little further forward. One of the men backed off, which again added to the confusion. Ianto reached out and grabbed the wrist of the man who was still groping the girl. With one expert twist he caused enough pressure to make the man let go with a loud yelp. As he jumped back the girl shot sideways around Ianto to stand behind him. Her companion moved to join her.

The man in front of him glared at Ianto, who had backed off slightly now he had done exactly what he intended to do. But judging by the look on the six men's faces he wasn't getting away with just turning and walking off. The man looked him up and down and his eyes lingered on Ianto's tightly bound right arm. It was unnecessarily still in the sling, but it had seemed a sensible enough precaution. Ianto now regretted it slightly, even in the bad condition it was in, he got the feeling now he was going to need it.

"Leave it Jake," one of the others said. He had also spotted the sling, his friends stance and now looked a little nervous.

"Why should I?"

"He's got a broken arm or whatever… come on let's just go."

Ianto frowned. The placating group member had been hanging back from the beginning and Ianto watched his eyes flicker to the side of the bar. Looking, he realised suddenly, for Jack's return. As if he didn't want Jack getting involved in this. Jack was certainly memorable enough, half of the city had probably seen him at one time or another. This guy knew him for a not so good reason.

"Yeah, no doubt him messing around in things that don't concern him."

Ianto raised an eyebrow, he could have pointed out that psychotic rampaging aliens were in fact his business and his arm wasn't actually broken just bitten, by said psychotic rampaging alien, but he got the feeling that none of that would really help.

The man glowered as Ianto said nothing. He stepped forward and pushed Ianto back slightly. He aimed for his good shoulder and Ianto moved back, but still he refused to be provoked. However the next voice that did break the silence made him wince.

"What's going on?" Jack said. His voice was loud and Ianto immediately picked out the vibration of stress in it. This was a situation that Jack was not prepared for. Ianto however moved for a pre-emptive strike, his plan; to get the two girls, Jack, himself and his shopping out of the pub.

"Nothing," he addressed Jack calmly over his shoulder. "We're just leaving now."

The man stepped forward. Ianto registered the slightly fusty look in his eyes, reddened face and inhaled the scent of alcohol on the man's breath. Even hampered Ianto was sure he could manage the guy. Whatever incident the guy at the back had connected with Jack, he had told at least two of his friends and they also looked rather nervous. The man stood in front of Ianto however, registered none of this. All he was concentrating on was Ianto.

"You're not, not until we settle this!" the drunk man snapped.

"I do believe it's settled and quite frankly I didn't want to get involved in the first place, I just happen to be a gentleman." He didn't add 'unlike some' but the hint was there. Ianto backed up slightly, wasn't followed and met Jack, who had stepped forward. Ianto glanced up, Jack's blue eyes moved over the group of men looking confused.

"Of course, your kind always are," the man said sarcastically. "Not interested in the girls are you, gonna go home and let your boyfriend here do you."

The insults came as a slur. None of them were particularly original, well-spoken, but they pretty much got to the point. Ianto saw Jack move slightly and open his mouth to answer. Seeing that Ianto stepped sideways to stand on his foot. Jack scowled as he felt the pressure and looked at Ianto. He knew full well that Jack, missing the point of the insults would have simply pointed out that Ianto wasn't having sex with him at the moment.

"Let's go," Ianto said to him. He wanted out of the pub, right that minute. Jack looked even more confused.

Then he looked startled as three of them stepped forward and Ianto wasn't surprised when Jack's hand strayed to his belt, where he gun would have been.

"Hey! Where's my gun gone?" Jack asked loudly.

"You can't use it anyway," Ianto murmured to him. The three men paused.

"Why not?" Jack asked. "They don't seem much different to a weevil to me."

Nor me, Ianto thought but didn't comment. "Don't worry, your gun is safe, Gwen locked it away." He told Jack in a low tone. The man, close enough to hear laughed.

"A gun, well your friend obviously likes dressing up." He eyed Jack's rather distinctive coat up and down. Jack frowned.

"Are you sure I can't kill him?" Jack asked.

"Yes, Jack, now let's go." Ianto turned to leave. He'd had enough and threats and insults were all he thought they were going to get.

However he was wrong. The drunk man was now convinced that Ianto was totally in the wrong. His drunk mind told him as such. And the rage hit him as he realised he was being dismissed by Ianto, who had dared to get involved in the first place. Despite the drunkenness he was swift as he lashed out. He grabbed for Ianto, caught the sling and yanked him back. Ianto staggered at the violence of the movement, and it was telegraphed slightly. He was pulled past the man and slammed into the bar, his arm jarring hard. The man's weight was against him for a second, and then suddenly it was gone.

He turned, someone helped him. Blinking to clear his fuzzy vision he realised it was one of the girls. He followed her gaze. Ianto could feel no surprise. Naturally it was Jack who had reacted, over-reacted. Seeing the man grab and push Ianto was too much for him. Ianto was hurt and Jack was supposed to be looking after Ianto as much as Ianto was looking after him. He had promised as much.

So, he had hauled the man off, grabbing him by the lapels and pulling him close with considerable force. His furious face was an inch away from the drunk's who was also pulled up onto his tiptoes by Jack's grip.

"You touch him again I really will kill you."

Jack's voice projected across the pub. The room had fallen silent during the altercation so Jack's voice and sudden change in aura carried. It was meant, understood and left no shadow of a doubt. Ianto glanced around. It was almost as bad as when the man had been groping the girl. No one wanted to get involved. No one should, Ianto thought, except again him, who probably should have left well enough alone the first time.

"Jack!" he snapped the name. Jack jerked back and let the man go. He didn't exactly push him but he fell back several steps. Ianto looked around, the girls had gone, the man's friends had retreated to the other end of the bar. The barman moved up towards Ianto.

"I think you and your friend had better leave."

Jack jerked at the unfriendly tone. Ianto however had other concerns.

"Come on," he said to Jack. "Get the stuff, we're leaving."


	26. Tears

They walked a little down the street, with Jack still holding the bags, before he dared to say anything.

"Sorry," Jack said. Ianto gave a heavy, gushing and violent sigh.

"Jack! You can't keep doing that! The whole point is you don't remember how to behave, so you shouldn't do anything unless any of us tell you. What the hell would have happened if you had have done something as stupid as you did the day before yesterday, shooting that weevil! Thank God Gwen had the sense to take your gun away from you! And I'm not sure Owen wasn't right with his idea of just putting you in the vaults!"

Ianto ranted, venting frustration that was not entirely anger. But as he referred to the vaults he lost Jack a little. He slowed slightly, losing pace until he stopped. Ianto for a second didn't notice, he carried on walking and talking.

"I mean I would have thought that you might have got the point by now and I know I'm a little incapacitated but I think a group of drunks I can actually manage. God! We just so shouldn't have stopped…." Ianto stopped. He realised he had lost his audience. Turning around he looked at Jack, several metres behind him. They had just turned onto a quieter side street so thankfully there was no one about.

"Jack!" Ianto snapped loudly. He watched Jack recoil, catching himself under the nearest streetlight so Ianto had a clearer view of his face, seeing his eyes blinking very rapidly and his lower lip trembling.

"You're mean!" Jack snapped. To emphasize the point he dropped all the shopping that he had diligently carried that afternoon, and somehow, shrugging his shoulders as he did so put more force into the gesture. They landed on the pavement with a crash and a sickening ominous crunch that told Ianto the glasses he had bought earlier that day had smashed. Probably to pieces seeing the force Jack used.

"Meaner than Owen!" Jack tried to shout but his voice broke halfway through and he burst into tears. It wasn't the same as the gentle leak of tears yesterday in the archive or the sobs on the bed first thing the previous morning. This time they were violent, heartfelt; Jack's utter confusion about what was going on around him. Where Ianto had tried to be calm and deal with him one minor vent had burst the damn in Jack. He stood there lit by the unforgiving lurid orange street light and he sobbed. The build up of the last few days exploded out in him as they had done in Ianto seconds earlier.

And it probably wasn't helped, an acidic little voice in Ianto's mind added, by the fact you got him drunk, when you know full well Jack never drinks. For a moment Ianto was pole-axed with misery, horror and yearning as he looked at Jack. Jack didn't move in those few seconds he just stood there and cried; really, really cried.

Ianto rushed to him. "Oh Jack, I'm sorry."

How pathetic does that sound, the little acidic voice asked him.

Ianto struggled for a moment. The guy had loosened the sling during the altercation in the pub and as Ianto rolled his shoulder and pulled slightly he got his arm out and reached for Jack. Ianto thought that was the reason that Jack didn't pull away from him, because he worried about Ianto's injury that Jack seemed to blame himself for.

Reaching out he put his arms around Jack. His left arm reached up around his shoulders but he didn't think his right would make it. Instead he put that around Jack's waist and since Jack wouldn't really go to him Ianto moved as close as he could.

Jack carried on crying. Over the last three days Jack had lived in a world of uncertainty and fear. His personality had fluctuated accordingly. But Ianto had been the most stable thing, probably the only stable thing if he really narrowed it down, that had kept everything on a level for him. With that tactless, angry rant that wasn't really directed at Jack in the first place, he might have just swept all of that away. Despite the fact Jack was still technically an adult, with adult drives, he was in fact only three days old.

"I didn't mean that. I'm just… those idiots in the pub wound me up and I couldn't leave the girls to them and... I really wouldn't have minded shooting them myself actually."

That got no reaction other than Jack leant into him a little putting his head down on Ianto's left shoulder. But he still cried, shuddering violently. He didn't make any attempt to hug him or respond.

"Oh God, Jack, please don't cry. Please."

Ianto didn't want to see him upset. It was the last thing he wanted.

"I broke the…" Jack faltered. "In the bag," he eventually wailed.

"It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter," Ianto said frantically. If that's all you are worried about then bloody well stop crying, Ianto's acid like voice said in his head, I only bought them to use in the pretend information office.

"But I broke them," Jack said. His crying had slowed and one arm tentatively moved around Ianto's waist, his right arm on Ianto's left side. Jack didn't seem to dare touch his right. Ianto clung on harder, trying to make him.

"Jack it doesn't matter, they are just a few cheap glasses."

That didn't really seem to help. Ianto kept his grip tight so Jack couldn't pull away. He even stopped worrying about people passing by. He just wanted Jack to stop crying, he didn't want to see him upset, standing so lost and alone in the middle of the street.

He pulled back to rummage in his right hand pocket. He may have been less smartly dressed than usual but he still always had a handkerchief on him. Jack had lifted his head at the movement and then almost pulled away, thinking Ianto didn't want to be near him. He paused and blinked as Ianto reached up to gently wipe the tears off his cheeks, then he cleaned up Jack's nose. Jack sniffed and gave a light hiccup, his head dropped a little and he looked down at the blue carrier bag which held the glasses.

"Hey," Ianto said gently, he put one hand under Jack's chin and made him lift his head again. Jack blinked, a few more tears leaked out. His eyes were now tinged red in stark contrast to his pale face. Ianto wiped away the few rogue tears and looked at Jack's eyes in his miserable face.

"I'm not angry at you, I didn't mean to shout." Ianto paused and gave a wry smile. "Well, not at you."

"Who then?" Jack asked with a trace of sulkiness to his voice.

"Me, those idiots in the pub, the barman and those girls even, but mainly me."

"Why? What did you do?" Jack asked.

Ianto shook his head, he wasn't even sure he could answer that. He just felt embarrassed, annoyed and he wished he had not thought to stop at the pub, he should have just taken Jack home. Jack was obviously still feeling vulnerable. At Ianto's hesitation he gave another hiccup, a sure sign he was gearing up to cry again.

"I want my memory back!" Jack wailed at him. And then he proceeded to start crying again. Ianto automatically pulled Jack close to him again. This time Jack forgot about Ianto's arm he almost threw himself onto Ianto and started to cry again.

"All right, Jack. We'll sort it, everything will be fine," Ianto soothed him. There was a threatening well of emotion starting to build up in him as well. He felt so bad for Jack; poor confused Jack. There was nothing Ianto could do but let the emotion run its course a little. The street was still quiet but Ianto didn't want to linger for too long. They did look rather conspicuous.

He waited a moment until Jack's bout of tears had finished. Then he went through the rigmarole of wiping his face and making him blow his nose.

"How about…" he paused, Jack sniffed and watched him. "How about we stop at the video shop on the way home and rent a couple of films, get some pizza and just curl up in front of the telly."

The corner of Jack's mouth lifted slightly in a smile, but his eyes still looked hurt, badly hurt.

"You won't shout at me again?" he asked nervously. Ianto smiled and shook his head.

"I wasn't really shouting at you the first time. Maybe we shouldn't have stopped for those drinks, or at least you shouldn't have had any alcohol." Ianto spoke gently. He probably needed to wait until Jack sobered up and calmed down before he really tried to explain it to him.

"Come on," Ianto said gently. He pulled the discarded sling over his head and stuffed it into one of the bags and he gathered some of them up in his left hand. Jack followed suit, picking up the rest wincing as he picked up the one with the shattered glass. He looked up at Ianto looking miserable. Ianto reached out his right hand and took Jack's in his. He couldn't hold on too tight, his grip was still not perfect but it felt distinctly better. It was only his grip that kept their hands together, Jack didn't hold on at all.

"What's the matter?" Ianto asked, sensing his hesitation.

"Is your arm all right?"

"Feels better, probably helped it's been strapped up for a day or so."

To prove the point he squeezed Jack's hand a little. Jack responded, returning the grip carefully. Ianto smiled, he stepped forward and tugged Jack's arm.

"Come on, let's get you home."

Jack remained very subdued through the walk, the pause in the video shop and while they waited for the pizzas. It worried Ianto but he didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say.

He had ordered two large pizzas, one with Jack's favourite topping and one with his, and a bottle of diet coke. There was no way he was taking any more chances with alcohol and he made it diet because he didn't think giving Jack too much sugar was a good idea either.

Jack looked up as he brought them into the living room and put the boxes and drink bottle down on the table. He had already loaded the first film ready to set it playing. Naturally Jack hadn't really had much a hand in the decision but Ianto chose two action films that were probably rather flimsy on plot but Jack would probably like the noise and guns.

Now Jack gave him a very tentative smile. He was dressed again in the tracksuit bottoms and tee-shirt. His eyes were still red, looking like he had rubbed them hard. He probably had while he was in the shower.

"There we go," Ianto said. He opened the boxes, the bottle of coke and set everything up as he sat down on the sofa next to Jack. "Are you all right?" he asked.

"Yes, thank you," Jack said very politely. He had looked very upset when he had seen the damage he had done to the glasses. They were completely ruined so Ianto just dropped them straight in the bin. Thankfully nothing else was too badly damaged, the birthday cards were a little creased but Ianto could blame that on the postman.

Ianto now reached out and touched Jack's leg, and then he pulled out a slice of pizza and sat back on the sofa, pressing play on the remote control. Jack very slowly did the same, settling back, glancing at Ianto on occasion. He reached for his drink, looking at it suspiciously.

"What's this?"

"Diet Coke," Ianto said with his mouth full of pizza.

"Will it make my head fuzzy?" Jack asked. Ianto winced; he had given Jack a coffee before his shower, hoping that both things would sober him. It seemed to work, thankfully.

"No."

Jack seemed happy with that. He took a sip and put the glass down then as he settled back with his pizza he slowly started to lean against Ianto. At that one small gesture Ianto felt the painful, cold sensation in his stomach ease. And his happiness at that made him make one further gesture. Jack jumped as he felt him shift, sitting up a little, looking at Ianto with hurt eyes. But he relaxed as Ianto slid his arm over the top of the sofa to put it around Jack's shoulders.

As they settled back down Jack gave a little huff of contentment. Ianto moved his arm to put a hand in Jack's hair and he turned his head to plant a light kiss on Jack's temple. Jack put his head down on Ianto's shoulder, still idly eating pizza as he did so.

"Better?" Ianto asked gently.

Jack's cheek rubbed against his shoulder. "Yes."


	27. Bed Time

This time there was no arguing, no debate about who was going to be sleeping where. When Ianto walked into his bedroom Jack was already settled there, still in his underwear, the same as Ianto. He had curled up in the bed, his head slightly propped up on a pillow.

As Ianto moved to his side of the bed, Jack pulled the duvet clear so he could clamber in. Jack sat up looking at Ianto's arm with a slight frown on his face.

"Is it all right?" his hand reached out to tentatively touch the bandage just above his wrist. He didn't move to the centre of the gauze where the wound was dressed and padded. Ianto smiled and nodded.

"It definitely feels better."

Jack looked a little unconvinced and reached up to gently touch Ianto's shoulder.

"That's better too, much better. Anyway I've taken some painkillers so it shouldn't bother me overnight."

Jack looked up from his tentative examination. "But not the other pills?" It wasn't really a question, Jack had spoken with certainty. Ianto smiled.

"No, I don't need them." The pattern had been pretty much set over the previous two nights. It wasn't just Jack worried about Ianto having a nightmare; it was about Jack's insecurity. Mainly his worry about people leaving him but simply because Ianto was the only secure thing in his rather short, three day old life. Despite the altercations he had been fairly steady with him. Or at least despite everything and everyone around them Ianto had tried to be consistent with him.

It had occurred to him, during the tearful incident in the street, that he had in fact on some levels acquired a child. Something that Ianto was not particularly fit to deal with. He had never felt particularly young, or child like even when he had been a child. There was no level of identification for him, he didn't know if that made it any better or worse.

"No, because I'm here," Jack said proudly. His mood had certainly improved throughout the evening as they had sprawled on the sofa with Jack tucked tightly against Ianto's side.

"Yes," Ianto agreed.

"Why?" Jack asked. "What do I do?"

Ianto shook his head. "I don't know, it's just always been like that."

Jack frowned. Ianto wondered if he should try to explain more somehow, while leaving out Lisa, Canary Wharf and all the mess that followed out of the conversation. He wasn't entirely sure that was possible and it didn't matter in the end because obviously Jack didn't care. Instead, he took Ianto by surprise by swiftly leaning forward and kissing him.

For a second he was so surprised he didn't respond. On previous occasions Jack had started to take that as rejection. However this time, he simply increased the pressure of his lips on Ianto's. And Ianto couldn't help his reaction, he kissed Jack back. Both of them kept the pressure light at first and Ianto gently flickered his tongue against Jack's.

At that moment Jack seemed to relieve all of the initiative of the situation onto Ianto. Instead of pushing the situation further he left it to him. Ianto knew he shouldn't but somehow for a moment his resolve weakened. The worry over upsetting Jack earlier that night probably didn't help and the fact that it was very clear that Jack wasn't a child in many senses spurred him on.

He deepened the kiss moving closer to Jack who met him halfway as their torsos brushed together and Ianto felt the radiating warmth of Jack's skin. He ran a hand over his shoulder, across the smooth skin of his back, feeling the muscles underneath. They rippled under his hand as Jack reached for Ianto. He slid both hands around his waist and Ianto felt Jack lace his fingers together so Ianto couldn't get away from him.

For a few minutes all they did was kiss. Ianto slid a hand up into Jack's hair, running his fingers through it, while the other hand stayed on his back, moving across his shoulders and up to the nape of his neck. Jack's hands stayed firmly locked at the small of his back.

Eventually they had to come up for air. Ianto rested his forehead against Jack's while he gasped for breath. Jack's arms tensed a little, making sure he stayed close. Ianto stayed still in his arms, he wasn't intending to pull away. Not physically anyway.

"We should stop," Ianto said and then corrected himself. "I should stop."

"You don't have to," Jack said breathlessly. The lilt of his voice told Ianto that Jack was aroused. Experience had taught Ianto all of the signs in Jack, and Jack probably knew all of them in him, although he probably didn't at that point in time.

"I do Jack," Ianto said.

"But I want to," Jack said. It was like some instinct that made him desperately want to cling to Ianto. Someway that Jack knew of pleasing him, so perhaps he wouldn't lose Ianto, he could somehow stop Ianto from leaving him. It was for the same reason that Ianto felt he couldn't.

"I know you do."

"Don't you?" Jack asked. This time his voice was calm. Previously the assertion that Ianto was refusing him caused a level of panic, this time Jack clearly felt a little more secure. Feeling the warmth of Jack's skin and taking in the scent of the shampoo and soap that he had used Ianto found himself answering honestly.

"I do Jack, oh God I do," Ianto heard the desire in his voice, the tone lowering dramatically as he tried to control himself. He wanted Jack, he always wanted Jack but as he was now, innocent and slightly emotionally naïve, Ianto was finding it hard to control the images in his head. He felt Jack's arms tighten slightly.

"But I can't Jack, I know you say you want to but…" Ianto paused trying to convey exactly what he meant. In the end he completely forgot as he moved his head, brushing his cheek against Jack's and burying his nose into his neck to root out Jack's distinctive musky scent that he joked was his 51st Century pheromones. Ianto didn't know if he was joking or not, or at least he didn't at the beginning. Now he almost knew it to be true. It was probably why Jack was so intoxicating to everyone around him. Ianto could never blame anyone wanting to be close to Jack, he felt it so strongly himself.

Being now the person physically closest to Jack made it even worse. Ianto watched each person pass fearing every time that this was the person Jack would pass him over for. Jack worried about people leaving him; Ianto knew exactly what he was talking about.

As he nuzzled into Jack's neck, running his tongue up over the pulse pounding under the skin, feeling it throb under the tip of his tongue, he was brought by to reality by Jack responding to him. It was not the usual sound Jack made when Ianto caressed him along his neck. This time he gave a gentle yip of surprise but he shuddered with pleasure at the same time. Ianto paused, still breathing in Jack's scent, but he had stopped what he was doing.

He was brought further back to reality as Jack nipped him lightly on his left collar bone. His touch was careful, more careful than Jack usually was. He knew exactly how much pressure to use to not leave a mark, or leave one, depending on the mood. Now Jack was just aiming for attention.

"Jack…?" Ianto started again. His hand clenched in Jack hair and he gave a sound of protest, although Ianto could hear the underlying growl of desire. Ianto released the grip and moved his hand down to Jack's shoulder. Again Jack's hands clamped together firmly, Ianto would have to struggle to get away, but he didn't want to do that.

"Jack, no," he said firmly, gently.

"I want to, I promise."

"I know you keep saying that, and I want to as well but we can't. It's got nothing to do with me wanting to leave you. I don't want to do that, I'll never want to do that," Ianto said. "But you only remember three days of your life and when you get your memory back… I don't want you to think I took advantage of you. I don't want you getting angry at me over it."

"I promise I won't," Jack's voice said calmly into his ear. Ianto pulled back a little so he could look at him and look into those open blue eyes. Eyes that used to be filled with secrets, always looking somehow darker than their real colour. Now they looked like they held a bright summer sky, there was nothing bad, or dark or haunted within them.

"Jack, you can't honestly promise that. And I don't want you getting your memory back and then being angry at me for what I've done. I think I might have got mad at you if you had done the same but, I don't know… I can't know and you can't either."

"I wouldn't ever get angry at you. You're nice."

Ianto sighed, but Jack had got angry at him. So furious in fact that he had nearly shot Ianto. He had been a fraction away from being executed by Jack. Gwen didn't believe it; Ianto didn't know what Tosh and Owen really thought. But he knew it; he understood Jack meant every word he had said. The irony was the fact that Jack had then put Ianto back together.

"You might and I wouldn't want you to be angry with me. I worry…"

Ianto paused, his eyes still on a level with Jack's their faces so close together, their bodies locked in a tight embrace.

"I worry that you might leave me."

Jack gazed at him in utter disbelief. It was clear on his face, in his eyes. But Ianto had it as a true defined fear. There was no doubting it, because it had happened. Ianto had got through it, and Jack had come back, for him and for all of them. But it still ran through Ianto as a dark red streak of fear. Maybe that was why Jack was feeling it, was he feeling what Ianto was feeling. They had no idea what was going on in Jack's mind, filled with an indefinable energy.

"I won't," Jack said stubbornly. He pressed himself closer to Ianto so their cheeks brushed together. Ianto couldn't stop himself again, his hand moved downwards over Jack's ribs, touching him lightly, almost testing to see if Jack reacted the same to him, in the same sensitive places that Ianto knew.

He was distinctly less vocal; Jack had a habit of telling Ianto exactly how each thing felt. What was good, what could be improved if he just did one little thing. Nothing was ever bad, it just now and again needed refinement, Jack often said.

It was clear Jack still liked it, he gasped, his breathing deepening as Ianto tickled him across his ribs and then Ianto moved slowly. Jack's stomach muscles contracted as he moved lower and Jack pressed close to him, Ianto's other hand moved back up into Jack's hair, again taking a firm grip and he nuzzled into Jack's neck again.

At the same time his hand slid lower finding Jack's erection. He ran his hands over the smooth cotton of the boxer shorts Jack was wearing, feeling the hardness underneath, and imagining the soft skin. He knew how it felt but he couldn't risk putting his hand right in. Ianto would lose himself totally.

He teetered dangerously on the brink. For a moment there was a flicker of a deep yawning chasm in his sub-conscious. Laid out for him he could just dive into it, dragging Jack with him. He wanted to now but in the harsh light of day would he really, honestly, be able to live with himself.

One part of him casually said yes, but there was another part, deeper within him. The one that was painfully tied to Jack, the one that feared the loss and the one that had mourned Jack when he had run away, for the thing, the person and the life, that was better; much better than Ianto could ever be. It had tortured him for the entire time that Jack was away. Ianto couldn't live with that again, for whatever reason.

Jack's breath was heavy and warm against his shoulder and he writhed in pleasure as Ianto touched him. Slowly he started to respond. Ianto felt the touch burning over his sensitized skin as Jack released his hands which had been tightly locked together. One now moved over Ianto's skin, over his side to his belly, where it hesitated before a moment later sliding under the waistband of his boxer shorts.

Unlike Ianto Jack felt no qualms about that. He didn't have any boundaries. The only ones he did have were the ones Ianto had instilled in him and he was rapidly breaking them down. He couldn't help but gasp as Jack's fingers slid over his erection gently exploring him in a very tentative fashion. It had none of Jack's usual finesse but then again Ianto didn't expect that. Jack had no memory of any previous sexual encounter; he was just running on instinct and then following Ianto's lead.

Ianto gasped as Jack's fingers ran to the base of his shaft and then moved lower to cup his testicles. He tensed and hesitated.

"Jack we can't," Ianto heard his voice waver, but he took several deep breaths to bring some level to his mind and very slowly he backed away from that chasm in his sub-conscious, bringing himself back into reality. Jack's hand didn't move from inside his underwear so Ianto very carefully moved his hand off Jack and gripped his wrist. That immediately pulled Jack back and he sat back slightly putting an inch of space between their bodies.

Ianto looked up into Jack's eyes. There was no fear or uncertainty; instead there was just the innocent blue that held a slight trace of understanding. Still innocent but a little more mature than before. Jack gave a smile.

"I know. I bet you I don't get mad though."

Ianto smiled. "You can't promise me though, can you?"

Jack shrugged, his forehead rested against Ianto's. There was, Ianto noticed, no tension between them. Instead it was very easy and companionable, even though they were sitting half naked and aroused in Ianto's double bed.

"I guess not. But… what if my memory doesn't come back. I want it back but if not?"

Jack left the question hanging and it made Ianto wonder. They had spent two days trying to find out what had happened, and apart from the discovery of the 'glowy' energy they were no closer to working out how to get rid of it. It was something they had never seen before and they weren't about to start randomly experimenting with Jack.

How long should it be, Ianto wondered, a week, a month, two months before it became respectable enough in his mind to sleep with Jack? If it went on that long the chances were that only a random accident or sheer chance would bring Jack back. There was something highly attractive to Ianto in that thought. That he could wait a little while; allow the relationship to develop to a point where they could have sex without his mind-numbing guilt ruining the moment.

"If not, we carry on one day at a time, okay?"

That seemed good enough for Jack. "Okay." He nodded at the same time and moved; leaning forward again he gave Ianto a chaste kiss on his cheek. Ianto smiled.

"Come on," he moved on the bed, taking what had been Jack's side the previous night. Jack watched him in confusion. Ianto rearranged the duvet to make it easier to pull over them. Ianto smiled at him.

"It's my turn to do the over-protective cuddling."

Jack smiled, but he looked at Ianto's arm, reaching out to touch his shoulder again.

"It is fine Jack, come on. We'll need to be up fairly early tomorrow."

"Why?" Jack asked but he turned to lie down on his side feeling Ianto settle down in the bed behind him. The duvet was pulled up around him before Ianto answered his question, leaning up so he could look at Jack.

"Because we had better go to work tomorrow."

"I don't want to," Jack said, looking up at him. "Can't we do nice things tomorrow?"

For one fraction of a second Ianto thought he was referring to sex but he smiled as he realised he meant having another day off. Ianto grimaced.

"I should really go and check in and if there isn't much going on we'll go out in the afternoon, we'll… we'll find something."

Hell fire, Ianto thought to himself, he spent most of his day pretending to work in a tourist information office. If he couldn't find something for them to go and do or see then he ought to be shot. He could show Jack some information and let him pick out whatever he liked.

"Okay," Jack said. He settled back down again and Ianto reached over him to turn off the light plunging them into the semi-darkness, lit by the outside street lights, patterned by the occasional passing car.

Ianto lay down behind Jack, snuggling close to his warmth. Again they both lay on their left sides, to protect Ianto's right arm. This time however he draped it over Jack and found Jack's hand. His left Jack had tucked under the pillow, under his head, as he usually did. His right found Ianto's, and they co-ordinated themselves so Ianto's forearm lay over Jack's, so his wound didn't feel any pressure. Jack splayed his hand and Ianto laced his fingers with Jack and Jack pulled the entwined hands to his chest.

It took a little more manoeuvring but Ianto settled his left under him and moved so he could put his hand in Jack's thick hair. He liked the feel of it, something he had only discovered very recently. In fact he couldn't remember if he had ever touched Jack's hair as intimately as he had over the last few days. As a gesture of comfort and also sexually. It was perhaps slightly reminiscent of petting a dog but Ianto dismissed that. Just because it was a comfort gesture for an animal didn't make it a bad thing for a person.

Jack sighed gently as he settled and moved slightly, pressing back against Ianto. His backside brushed against Ianto's half-erect member but it was nothing lewd, it was incidental to the fact. Jack was moving so the entire length of their bodies met from head to foot. They pressed themselves together and as a last gesture, Ianto pressed his lips against the back of Jack's neck.

Jack gave a low murmur and his hand squeezed Ianto's. Ianto nuzzled into Jack's neck and took in his scent.

"Goodnight, Jack."


	28. Shattered

Jack wasn't quite asleep. He never really slept but he was enjoying the feel of being curled up in Ianto's embrace, of being looked after and protected as he had done for Ianto last night. But he couldn't stop the feeling that it was on some levels very unusual. He wondered if it had even happened this way around, before he forgot everything.

Debating the thoughts in his mind he knew he wasn't going to ask Ianto. That would upset him, Jack surmised, and he wasn't about to do that. He was still smarting from the dressing down Ianto had given him last night but Jack was able enough to understand that it wasn't anything to do with him, not really. Ianto felt angry at himself, at everyone around him, but not Jack. In the end Jack knew he couldn't be blamed for anything, because he didn't know any better.

It was frustrating. Violently frustrating as he lay there and thought about it. Behind him Ianto slept peacefully, his body pressed against Jack's, one hand entwined in Jack's the other resting on his head. Jack liked that, Ianto touching his hair. It was nice. It actually made Jack wonder if he had nice hair. He hadn't paid much attention to it other than to wash it. He'd ask Ianto in the morning. Ianto's opinion on the subject was probably the best to find out. He baulked as asking Owen about it. Gwen might be honest but Toshiko still looked a little nervous about him.

No, he'd ask Ianto and find out. Jack smiled at that. Ianto would probably look surprised when he asked. His eyes would do that wide surprised expression. Jack liked that, he liked it when Ianto looked at him in such amazement.

Suddenly, Jack stopped thinking, he stopped planning. He froze, his body tensed. Behind him Ianto moved, pressing closer but he didn't wake. The tension was momentary then he settled back down to sleep. But Jack couldn't do that. Over the last two days he had been concentrating on everything around him. He knew all the sounds and sensations around him.

Now however there was a strange sound, like glass, it tinkled lightly. Not the heavy smash of him dropping the glasses earlier on but something higher on the scale, but Jack had no doubt that it wasn't supposed to be there. Something deep down in his sub-conscious, an instinct, stirred within him.

Slowly he moved. He didn't want to disturb Ianto but he had learnt not to walk into these situations without someone to guide him. He carefully unlaced his hand from Ianto's and rolled over, he moved so he could keep Ianto's hand clear and he turned to face him. The street light gave no clear illumination. Jack reached and felt for Ianto gently gripping his ribcage to shake him.

"Ianto!" Jack hissed his name, flinching as the odd glass like sound resonated again. Jack shook Ianto hard and he stirred and moaned lightly.

"Shush!" Jack hissed at him. "Wake up please."

Jack thought of the last thing that had drawn Ianto's attention. He dropped his head and nipped at his collar bone. Ianto stirred a little more violently. Jack bit him again, Ianto jerked. Jack grabbed for him and clung on.

"Ianto!"

"Jack! What? Jack!"

Because he was sleepy Ianto's voice was low. As he protested Jack shut him up by kissing him. Ianto growled but then stilled as Jack held him down and he stared to hear the background noise.

"Jack?" Ianto was awake, his voice low and very controlled.

"Strange sounds," Jack said in the same low tone, but his voice wavered. "I heard them."

Ianto stayed still, lying on the bed with Jack facing him. Jack had rolled on the bed, confusing Ianto's position slightly, but he also registered that he wasn't lying, or hadn't been lying in his usual position. Jack was normally closest to the door, keeping Ianto protected on some levels; an instinct that Jack seemed to have. Plus Ianto had put his gun where his strong hand, his right, could get to it.

"Jack?"

"There's…"

"I hear it." The sounds were happening behind him. But his gun lay in the far drawer. He pushed Jack slightly, and Jack rolled. Confused and scared he could do nothing else. He went onto his back and Ianto rolled on top of him. He reached for the drawer and pulled it open. He moved over the rubbish to the back and touched the cool smooth metal of the gun's handle. He took it and pulled it out. The drawer was set up to look like it contained rubbish. It looked like nothing more than the random preoccupation of normal life and it concealed Ianto's real life perfectly.

He pulled the gun rolled back off Jack and extended it to move so he landed on his back and then sat up. Jack followed him. For a moment they paused and listened. The sound of breaking glass was there again and something else seemed to drum underneath it. As Ianto sat up Jack grabbed for his shoulder.

"Ianto!" he whispered, his voice low, aware that Ianto was taking the situation seriously. Ianto let out a breath and took one in. He moved the gun putting it into his left hand. It wasn't his dominant hand but it would have to do. He held the gun and knew he could fire, Jack always made sure they could work two handed. He used his right to slot the first bullet in and he kept his right hand on the gun. Using it to help steady and sight was better than nothing, then all he needed his left hand for was to pull the trigger.

The sounds beyond became more violent. Jack tightened the grip on his shoulder as Ianto started to get up.

"Stay here," Ianto said calmly.

"No!" Jack hissed back. Ianto turned his head; Jack still held the same tight grip on his shoulder.

"We're supposed to look after each other!" Jack said. What he had hinted at as he had dressed Ianto in the hub, what had gone on for the last three days. They had combined over the last 72 hours to rely on each other heavily. Now Ianto couldn't deny that. He shouldn't take Jack into any danger but he couldn't manage alone. Slowly he nodded.

"Stay behind me," Ianto ordered as he slid off the bed. Jack followed and did as he was told.

"I wish I had my gun," Jack lamented as they moved onto the landing. He followed Ianto as he moved, staying close to the wall, moving around the landing to the stairs.

"No, you don't," Ianto said. "You don't ever want to have to use one."

Jack gave a light low snort. "Who said that?"

Ianto paused at the stop of the stairs. He crouched down and peered around into the hallway trying to locate the sound. Then he straightened up and looked at Jack. For a moment they stayed still. They couldn't see each other clearly but they were aware of each other.

"You did," Ianto whispered. Jack would have answered but the sound resonated again. It made Jack jump slightly and the floorboards creaked. It wasn't loud but it made them both wary. Ianto gripped the gun lightly with his left hand and pushed Jack back against the wall with his right. They moved steadily along the landing towards the stairs trying to minimise the sounds as they brushed along the wall. As they shuffled around the wall to come into view of the stairs and the hallway below Ianto raised the gun, just in case. Behind him Jack tensed.

Ianto took one swift step and slammed his shoulder into the corner pointing the gun down the stairs. There was nothing. The dim light revealed the cabinet at the bottom and he could faintly see the shadowy line of Jack's coat where it was hung up on the rack. He turned back to look at Jack, who was as close to him as he dared. Ianto's hand slid up, pressing against Jack's stomach to keep him back against the wall as they started down the steps. Ianto moved steadily, his gun still raised as the passageway that led further into the flat slowly revealed itself. He found himself comforted by the hand he had on Jack. It steadied his mind and nerves, even though he knew he should probably have insisted that Jack stayed upstairs.

All he was really assuming was the sound of breaking glass was someone trying to get in the back. It had happened to someone a little further down the street just recently. Someone had broken in; it was probably just that, Ianto assured himself. Although even as he tried to think that some deeper instinct told him he was wrong. It was never something as simple as that for any of them.

"Ianto?" Jack whispered urgently. Ianto moved his hand, along Jack's side and he took Jack's wrist squeezing lightly. Jack took the hint and stilled down, simply following along behind.

As they reached the bottom of the stairs they turned cautiously, Jack doing exactly as Ianto silently ordered him, staying back and allowing Ianto to take point. Although Ianto couldn't really fault Jack's behaviour when it came to combat situations; the weevil incident told all of them that he was still intuitively a soldier, he just didn't want to risk his behaviour getting out of control again.

For a moment he waited. The flat was silent, nothing stirred now. Maybe they just imagined it but then Ianto recoiled slightly backing up into Jack. He held the gun up ready but he had the same issue he had three days ago.

How the hell do you shoot a dancing speck of light?

His memory replayed the incident in the warehouse, swiftly slotting images through his mind. The same sound of breaking glass, like it was lightly dropping to the floor had been there as well. Ianto had just assumed it was the severely damaged windows beaten by the wind. Now he was rethinking that opinion as he quickly weighed up the options.

Jack's wrist was still firmly locked in his grip. Ianto felt him squirm and he let go, putting his right hand on his gun instead. The light floated forward. There was no breeze this time to fool him. It moved side to side, up and down and then in circles, slowly coming towards them from the kitchen area. From where the sounds of breaking glass had resonated.

"Ianto?" Jack hissed at him. Ianto didn't answer he stayed still, staring at the light that moved around in front of them. He could only assume it was the same one, or same thing, that had hit Jack. It was only a tiny pin prick, looking like nothing more than a speck of dust but in the darkness of his hallway, it was bright and very visible. He backed up slightly as it danced towards him.

It didn't escape him that it seemed to be aiming for him. Ianto exhaled heavily, releasing the breath he didn't realise he was holding. His heart started to hammer in his chest and he made and effort to try and control his breathing to calm his body down. The first speck of light had exploded and somehow had got into Jack, taking his memory. Ianto could only assume he was next in line for that. Or somehow the light is what was now in Jack's brain.

He jumped as it jerked right. He followed it with his gun, his eyes moved and out of the corner of his eye one slight shadow told him exactly what the target was. Jack had moved back towards the stairs and the light went with him. Ianto stepped to follow him flanking what he suddenly realised was the target.

"Ianto?" Jack asked nervously. Ianto stopped inwardly cursing himself. He had left his phone upstairs. To alert the others he had to get back up there, unless of course Owen was in the hub and the light happened to set off the rift machine.

He did debate turning on the hall light but that only risked him not being able to see what he assumed… well, he actually couldn't assume anything, he realised. Without Jack's in-depth knowledge they were all out of their depth. They had never really voiced that, even when Jack was away. Instead they had just stumbled on, managing as best they could. Perhaps that was the simple reason for the invasion of Jack's mind, without him they were helpless.

The dancing light started to move a little quicker, the movements less curved and instead more angular, snapping from one spot to another. Ianto couldn't say much for certain but he got the impression that the light was getting agitated with him. Somehow it couldn't get to Jack with him in the way.

"Jack?" Ianto spoke low, and very calm. His eyes flickered to the front door, and then the stairs. Going outside was probably not the best idea, if nothing else they were only dressed in their underwear, and what they could possibly do when they were outside was another matter. He could hardly explain to his neighbours that they were running away from a speck of bright white light. That was likely to get them locked up, if indecent exposure didn't first.

In the end Ianto made the decision, get back upstairs and alert the others. They would then have to do something, but they could only do that if they were aware of the situation. If anything happened to either him or Jack, they needed to be forewarned of it. With that as his only choice Ianto slowly moved towards the stairs, backing directly into Jack. The flying speck became more violent and it started to glow intermittently, flickering on and off like a fairy light.

"Ianto?" Jack's voice wavered, sounding nervous and close to tears.

"Stay behind me Jack," Ianto said calmly. "Right behind me. When we get back upstairs I want you to get my phone from the bedside cabinet and find Owen in the address book."

"I don't like him!" Jack snapped.

"Jack, he needs to know, please," Ianto said. He kept his voice low, trying to impart to Jack the seriousness of the situation. Except Ianto didn't know how serious it was.

As they backed up the stairs, Jack dutifully staying directly behind Ianto the light started to flicker even more violently darting from side to side trying to get at Jack. Ianto hovered halfway up the stairs. Suddenly thinking that something was about to happen.

The flash of light was concentrated. The glowing fairy light expanded into a beam, a hard, intense flash and it hit Ianto directly, suddenly in his eyes.

"Jesus!" he swore.

"Ianto!" Jack yelled his name in panic and warning. Halfway up the stairs, stood on the very edge as they sloped down into the hallway Ianto stumbled. He couldn't see but he blinked frantically trying to shift the lights from his eyes. But he was so close to the edge of the stairs that he didn't see. He caught himself on the edge on the wooden lip and without any warning, as far as Ianto could see, he pitched off the stairs into the hallway.

It was lucky, he thought in that second, that it was not a long drop, three foot at most, where the stairs came down from the upper floor. There was no banister, it would have looked silly for such a tiny set of stairs but it should have had it for just that little moment. The only unfortunate thing was he had his gun in his left hand, so naturally he used his right to break his fall.

"Ianto!" Jack shouted for him again as he screamed. He didn't land directly on the bite wound but he jarred his arm hard, sending a series of shooting pains along his arm, up his shoulder and as a final insult he slammed his head against the wall. Not hard but enough to add a few stars to the flashing lights.

Behind him there were other sounds. He could hear Jack falling, and a crashing sound, a crunching that was familiar. Not that long ago he had heard it. A sickening sound that worried him more than the throbbing pain surging up and down his arm. Then suddenly everything was quiet. All Ianto could hear was his own ragged breathing and his heart thudding in his ears.

Slowly he moved, ignored that deep pain in his arm. He used his other, his hand still clutching the gun, as support as he got up sliding against the wall to keep himself steady. He blinked in the dim light. There was nothing more than a dark blur. Tears were leaking out of his eyes, burning his corneas. His eyes were so sore he couldn't see the flashing lights he expected behind his eyelids. There was almost nothing. Very carefully he stood up, keeping on hand on the wall and he blinked, several times, slowly and deliberately. His eyes were burning, and the pain shot through them every time his eyelids closed.

Still he forced himself to perform the act. It was the only way, he hoped, of calming his eyes down. While he did that he listened carefully.

"Jack?"

He could hear Jack's heavy breathing. He pinned the location down to somewhere near the front door. Trying to focus he spotted a shadowy blur moving around that area. At least, he thought, he hoped, Jack was still there and still moving.

"Jack?!" His voice increased in urgency. Jack's answer was a groan and then a yelp of pain.

"Damnit!" Jack announced loudly. There was a thud, Ianto half saw the shadow roll over. Everything was becoming a little clearer, the lines starting to sharpen up. Ianto moved his hand along the wall, just to his left there was the light switch for the hallway. He moved forward as he tried to locate it.

"Jack, I'm going to turn on the light," he warned the other man. As far as Ianto could tell he was still on the floor, panting with pain and shock. Ianto braced himself and flipped the switch. That elicited another violent groan from Jack and a gasp of pain from Ianto. His eyes set up another round of burning and tears and he was forced to blink again to clear his vision.

When he did he gave another gasp of horror. Jack lay on the floor having landed against the wall where Ianto had put out three glass bottles so he would remember to take them to the recycling bin. They had all shattered on impact and as Jack had rolled over one long, vicious looking sliver had embedded itself in his stomach, just under his ribs. A thin line of blood was seeping down across his navel. Jack grimaced as he looked at it.

"Oh great," he groaned. He reached down and plucked the glass out of his stomach. The flow of blood increased slightly, a bright red bead welling up from the puncture wound.

"Christ!" Ianto said. He rushed forward forgetting the pain in his eyes and he went to Jack's side, moving around to the left to avoid the shattered glass.

"Careful," Jack said anyway. Ianto didn't register; he knelt down by his side looking at the wound intently. It didn't look too bad, the puncture wasn't deep. He put a hand on Jack's stomach just close to the wound and the other on his shoulder.

"It's all right Jack," Ianto said, trying to sound calm and keep the tears from welling in his eyes. The harsh hallway light wasn't helping. He wondered if he could get Jack into the lounge where he could use one of the softer lights. Firstly though, he wanted to make sure he wasn't going to panic.

"Could have been worse," Jack said. "It could have been a cactus, now that is painful, especially if you end up sitting on it. I remember it took John ages to pull all the spines out of my arse, although I think he rather enjoyed it…."

Jack stopped talking. Ianto was staring at him in shock. There was one word in that rant that had caught Ianto's attention; remember. Jack remembered. Such was Ianto's shock he didn't feel the usual stir of jealousy at the mention of one of Jack's ex's. And John's name usually brought the green-eyed demon up the furthest. Ianto blinked again and looked into Jack's eyes. The summer sky was fading, the shadows had returned. Although they didn't seem as dark, but Ianto could put that down to his damaged eyesight.

"Jack?"

Jack gave a mildly cocky grin. "Hello."

Ianto smiled back, "Jack?"

"Hello, again."

Without thinking Ianto lent forward and put his arms around Jack's shoulders hugging him tightly. Jack returned it with a mild amount of shock, however he yelped as Ianto caught the wound.

"Whoa, ow!"

Ianto pulled back, "sorry, sorry." He sniffed; his nose seemed to be getting in on the act with his eyes. He needed a tissue and he needed a dressing for Jack. The wound wouldn't be bad for long but for now it needed attention.

"I'll get the first aid kit, it's upstairs," Ianto rose up slowly, Jack's eyes swept the area looking for any rogue bits of glass. He didn't want Ianto inadvertently stepping on any. Jack looked up as Ianto looked down at him; there was an odd expression on the young man's face. Jack smiled and Ianto gave a tentative smile back.

"I'll just be a second."

He turned and darted up the stairs, taking them two at a time and stumbling at the top, where he went into the darkness and his eyesight was still not perfect.

"Careful," Jack warned him.

"I'm all right," Ianto replied. He winced as he turned on the bathroom light. It was just as bright as the hall light, if not more so in the bright white room that looked like it was glowing to his sensitive eyes. He moved to the cabinet by the sink and pulled the green box off the bottom shelf. There was usually very good reason to keep the first aid kit well stocked. With their jobs it was a necessity. Ianto opened it and pulled out a dressing and a sterile wipe. That would do, Jack's wounds never really needed more than basic attention.

Then Ianto reached for the tissues on the top, he wiped his eyes and nose and paused. Jack was back, whatever had taken his memory had now returned it. Ianto felt glad about that, of course he did but there was another part of him, deeper down that felt sad. He had got one Jack back but to do that he lost another. The sweet, innocence side of Jack, the one that didn't feel pain, or horror or suffer bad memories. The person that, Ianto believed, Jack once was, before he had really started to see all the horrors the world, and the universe, had to offer.

Ianto took a long, deep calming breath. He felt another flood of tears to his eyes, but these ones had nothing to do with the pain of the light flash. These were over the pain in his heart.

As he heard sounds from downstairs he pulled himself together, gathered up what he needed and went out of the bathroom.

Jack had got up from the hallway. Ianto hurried, but was very careful heading down the stairs. One fall was enough for him. His arm was still throbbing but it was starting to subside. He turned as he reached the last step to find Jack in the kitchen swabbing the wound with a tea-towel.

"Jack!" Ianto objected. Jack looked up startled and then looked down at the now stained towel.

"Sorry. I'm sure it will wash." Jack looked at the red blotches on the pristine white and grimaced.

Ianto sighed in exasperation. "Never mind that, it's not exactly hygienic is it? Come here!"

Jack looked startled by the sudden command. Ianto moved into the kitchen, opening the sterile wipe. He moved to Jack and took the towel out of his hand, putting it to one side. Then he started to clean up the wound. Jack's stomach muscles tensed as the feel of the cold wipe.

"Keep still," Ianto ordered him, literally ordered, sounding like he was expecting to be obeyed. Jack almost opened his mouth to over-rule him but at the last moment he stopped himself.

"Are you all right?" Jack asked. He looked Ianto up and down. He was moving his right hand very gingerly, his eyes were red, his face blotchy from the flow of tears. In short he looked dazed and in pain. Jack didn't worry about one little bit of glass. He'd had worse injuries.

"I think so. What about you?" Ianto suddenly asked. He paused cleaning up the wound and looked at Jack. Then he looked away and reached for the dressing, ripping open the packaging in his usual competent fashion. "You remember everything?"

Jack's eyes rolled in his head. "Yep, ask me anything, no… in fact… here goes. Ianto Jones, looks cute in a suit, makes great coffee and shags like a…."

"Thank you, Jack!" Ianto cut him off.

Jack grinned and then it faded a little. As Ianto finished applying the dressing to what Jack considered to be nothing more than a scratch, he took his shoulders and held him still, moving one hand to raise Ianto's chin to look at his eyes.

"Christ," Jack said. His hand ran up over Ianto's cheek, stroking lightly. "I think Owen should look at you."

"And you," Ianto said. "I think I can safely guess though that the glowy energy in your head has gone."

"The what energy?" Jack asked in amusement. Ianto frowned.

"Don't you remember the last few days, three days?"

Jack's eyes widened, "that long!" He paused, nodding as he considered it. "It's a little blurry, that part of it is anyway. I'll explain at the hub, we'll call the others on the way."

"Okay," Ianto said a little sadly. It left him with no doubt, Jack was back, Jack was all business. That left Ianto feeling a little sad.

He had hoped, that he might have shown Jack, just even a little bit, that it didn't have to be that way. Not all the time.


	29. Bad Mood

Ianto went down into the archives to file Jack's report on exactly what happened. He had gone through it in the morning team meeting, patiently at first. But Ianto could detect that he didn't like anyone really asking questions. Which of course, Gwen and Owen did.

"So what, they're like from another dimension?" Owen asked, after Jack had explained the rather strange alien contact he had had over the last three days.

At the head of the table, Jack had sighed heavily. His hands tensed around the coffee mug. Ianto had discovered that Jack hadn't completely destroyed the coffee machine. After half an hour of tinkering, while Jack was being examined - and wound up - by Owen, he had managed to produce some fairly reasonable coffee.

"Not exactly they just exist on a higher energy vibration," Jack said. Gwen frowned.

"Higher, how do you mean higher?"

"The energy they produce works…" Toshiko started and paused, frowning as she thought about it. Jack sat back and let her. As if he really didn't want to talk about it. Ianto sat on Tosh's left, Jack was on her right. Although it looked like he was concentrating on what she was saying Ianto could see Jack giving him rather intense, covert glances. The glitter in Jack's eyes made Ianto feel a little uncomfortable. He was trying not to meet the gaze.

"…faster, so they are almost not there, but they are." Toshiko finished her explanation rather lamely and looked at Jack. Jack straightened up, and Ianto could then safely look up as Jack turned back to the business in hand.

"Like ghosts you mean… sort of?" Gwen said.

"Yeah, but they're not dead. Our energy level, the vibration of it is slower so we can't really interact with them directly so they often just…"

"Invade your brain?" Owen asked. He had, on inspecting Jack, found the glowy energy had gone. And he had kept referring to it as such much to Jack's annoyance. Owen just kept saying that Jack had named it therefore it was a technical term, as of now. Having just finished the report on the two weevil autopsies Owen was biding his time, since he had spiced it with the terms, icky, eeeww and goo, and was rather keen to see Jack's reaction.

"Yes, the amnesia was an unfortunate side effect. I didn't realise it had been that long, their concept of time is a little different to ours. With my body here and my brain there…" Jack paused and frowned. "Catching up is a little confusing."

"But you remember everything."

"Two sets of memories for the same time scale," Jack said.

"Have they ever been here before?" Owen said. "Ianto was looking for references for anything similar and nothing seemed to fit."

"Once I had whittled out all the alleged bright light and alien kidnap stories," Ianto said wryly. Jack smirked, Owen rolled his eyes.

"Nothing like that," Jack said. "I don't think they'll try again either, for a while at least. The whole concept of me stuck with amnesia worried them a little. It was the first time they had contacted a human."

"We're they looking for you specially?" Gwen asked. Jack frowned at her and she looked around at the rest of them before her direct gaze returned to Jack. "Well, you do have a little bit more knowledge than the rest of us."

"True, but I think it was a case of co-incidence that we picked up the energy signature on the rift machine and we were the first humans they found. Although I rather think they wanted Ianto more than me. I just moved you out of the line of fire."

"Oh," Ianto said. There wasn't much else he could say to that. He did remember Jack pushing him out of the way when the light hit and it hadn't seemed to want to go near him when it was trying to return Jack's memories.

"So you were talking to them then?" Gwen asked.

"Not talking as such, just kind of…" Jack narrowed his eyes as he thought. "Seeing my memories as… as if I was someone else. Anyway," Jack announced with a swift change of subject. "What's been going on around here?"

Ianto slid the report into the relevant cabinet and then picked up Owen's report on the weevils. That had not gone down well at all. Ianto picked it up, Jack had scrawled over it in red pen, like a teacher correcting a child's work. Owen had refused to change any of it and Jack had spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon in a foul mood. Ianto had known that was coming, after the end of the team meeting. Gwen and Toshiko had dispersed first to chase up a report of a possible alien artefact in the local museum.

Owen had aimed for the door of the conference room and then paused, making sure Gwen and Tosh had disappeared down the corridor before he turned around and looked at Ianto and Jack.

"I'd better add, but I haven't told those two, there were reports of an altercation in a pub yesterday about 6:30. One of them certainly fits your description," Owen looked at Jack. Jack frowned, looking confused, so Owen looked to Ianto.

"Oh… we were shopping…"

Owen's mouth twitched slightly and he glanced at Jack.

"I was shopping, Jack was carrying, we paused in a pub on the way home and there were some drunk louts at the bar harassing a couple of girls. I intervened, then so did Jack." Ianto kept it as succinct as possible. He didn't want to mention Jack was drunk.

"I think we have encountered a couple of them before now, one looked like he recognised Jack."

"People we've pissed off," Owen said calmly. He looked at Jack. Jack shrugged.

"Some bits are still unclear; I'm missing that at the moment," Jack said blithely.

"I've made sure the police dismissed it anyway," Owen turned to Ianto to tell him. As he did so Jack also turned to look at Ianto. He might have openly dismissed what Owen was saying but Ianto could tell immediately he was entirely aware of what had happened. The look in his blue eyes was frosty in the extreme. Jack wasn't happy. Not one bit.

With a sigh Ianto filed the last report. He had managed to avoid Jack for the rest of the day. Or at least had stayed as inconspicuous as possible, but since Jack was picking holes in everything today it was hard to escape his wrath. Ianto wasn't the only one on the receiving end, the only one who was immune to that was Owen, who had at one point retorted with.

"I'm dead, why do I care?"

Maybe, Ianto thought, he should have confessed to giving Jack alcohol. But he felt too embarrassed about it. All Ianto could do instead was try and stay as impersonal as possible. It was what he had done throughout the day. Just getting on with his work without trying to pay to much attention to the heavy pain in his chest.

He had wanted Jack back, and he knew full well that once Jack was over his bad mood everything would be fine but they still had to ride the storm of Jack sudden mood. Slowly closing the drawer Ianto turned and went out into the hub.

"Ianto!"

His name was roared across the huge space. How Jack managed to project his voice like that from the office always baffled Ianto, and he only ever seemed to do it to bellow his name.

"Ianto!"

As Ianto headed in Jack's direction and he passed the autopsy room he glanced down at Owen, tidying up.

"Glad to have him back are you?" Owen said with a satisfied smirk.

Ianto rolled his eyes. He was, he honestly was but he felt sad that for some reason Jack was trying to erase everything he had been the last three days, as if he was embarrassed by it, or scared. Ianto wasn't sure which, both were probably there in good measure if he considered it.

"Ianto!"

The last bellow was almost directly in his face as he entered the office door.

"Captain?" he said politely. That address should have been Jack's first warning sign. Still, he didn't take note of it. Instead he held up the copies of the reports that Ianto had done yesterday and efficiently put ready to post later on today.

"I didn't sign these!"

"No, I did Sir," Ianto said calmly. The papers snapped back so Jack could look at them again. At the bottom of each one, where necessary, was a perfect copy of his signature. He looked back up at Ianto.

"You forged my signature?"

"Yep," Ianto said, coolly. Very coolly.

Now Jack paused as he looked at him, remembering Owen's comment from a few days back. That Ianto went quiet when he got angry. Now Jack looked at the steady gaze. Ianto's blue eyes were definitely as cool as his voice; he looked back at Jack, waiting patiently. Jack looked at the signature again.

"Why?"

Ianto's shoulders set back slightly. "Because they needed to be done, and since you didn't seem to know how to read, I presumed you wouldn't be able to sign your own name."

"They could have waited a day."

Ianto's eyebrow rose slightly, Jack unconsciously sat back in his chair. Then he remembered himself and sat forward again.

"Since we had no idea how long you would have amnesia I thought it prudent to simply get it done."

"How long have you been forging my signature?"

"I could always do a fairly reasonable copy, but I rather had to perfect it when you disappeared, Sir."

The last word was spoken to sting and it hit the mark. Ianto watched Jack flinch. He could see he was taken aback, but Ianto was not very inclined to try and smooth the situation over by saying anything else, instead he just stood there and waited for Jack.

Jack should have taken the hint. He had pushed his mood as far as he should have, probably more than he should have, but he felt angry, he felt vulnerable, especially as the pair of calm but still slightly red eyes looked at him, trying not to silently demand an answer to every question.

"Have they gone in the post yet?"

"No, I'm due to go this afternoon."

"Fine, I can re-do them then, get me some clear copies."

Jack slammed the photocopies down on the desk and glared at Ianto. It took every ounce of Ianto's felt control to stop himself from reacting, other than to nod curtly.

"Yes, Sir."

He retreated as quickly as possible, moved across the hub and back into the archive. He went to the relevant filing cabinet and started to rummage for what he wanted.

"What's going on?" Owen asked. Ianto yelped in shock, banging into the open drawer and it shot home on the runners. He managed to whip his hand out in time.

"Jesus Owen! Don't sneak up on people like that!"

Owen raised his eyebrows. "Sorry, is your hand all right? I don't think you need any more damage. How do your eyes feel now?"

"Still aching a bit but the drops helped." Ianto said. Owen had also gone and dimmed all the lights in the hub. Enough so that everyone could still work easily enough but it made it easier on Ianto's eyes. There was no permanent damage; they were just going to be sore for a while.

"Okay, so what's going on?"

"What do you mean?"

Owen rolled his eyes. "I mean, I'm dead, not stupid. What is up with Jack? You've spent enough time with him, what happened? You didn't…"

Those two words hinted at what Owen was getting at.

"NO!" Ianto shouted. Owen lurched back, over dramatically and raised his hands at the same time. "No, I didn't do anything with Jack, I came close, Jack kept… well… hinting enough but no. I thought it was wrong."

"Don't tell me he's got the hump because you didn't."

"No, it's," Ianto sighed heavily. "The altercation in the bar…"

"Yes," Owen said as Ianto faltered.

"Jack was drunk. He didn't start it but when we stopped for a drink…" Ianto tailed off feeling his face flush with shame.

"You gave him alcohol."

Ianto nodded miserably. He opened the drawer again to find the forms he needed, just for something to do.

"How much?" Owen asked.

"Two pints of lager," Ianto said. His misery didn't last very long because Owen, hearing that piece of information snorted with laughter.

"You are kidding me! That's it! Two pints of lager and he's anyone's, well mainly yours but, we'd better not let that information out!"

Ianto looked up and gave a wan smile. Owen's face sobered. Then he frowned and turned around. "What the hell?"

Owen turned and went back up into the main area of the hub. Toshiko was at her desk, the artefact she had picked up lay on the desk, just to the right of her computer. She was booting up to obviously start whatever tests she wanted to run.

Gwen was stood in front of Jack and one look at their aggressive stances told Owen everything. He sensed Ianto move up behind him but Owen blocked the doorway, making Ianto stay behind him as he watched Gwen yell at Jack.

"There's no need to be bloody rude, what's the matter with you?!"

"You are supposed to be working for a secret organisation. Secret meaning you don't tell people! You are going to have to retcon that curator now, and you can go and do it, make sure you do it properly!"

"How the hell can we be secret with you waltzing around Cardiff in that daft coat and the SUV, we're more well known than…" Gwen stopped and faltered. "Oh God I don't know!" Off the top of her head she couldn't think of anything, four or five things would come back half an hour later when the argument had wound down.

"And you don't help with that!"

"Oh God you're… why the hell did you have to get your memory back, you were much nicer without it!" Gwen yelled. Jack fell back slightly. Gwen spun on her heel.

"I am leaving."

Owen moved forward, Gwen glared at him as she stormed past to the cog door to get out. Ianto moved out, not surprised that Jack snatched the papers off him.

"Don't you have an office to run?" Jack said rudely. He spun on his heel and stalked back to his office. Owen saw the look of hurt pass across Ianto's face before he turned and followed in Gwen's wake, going to the door to go upstairs. It wouldn't have bothered him, shouldn't bother him but he had seen that look on Ianto's face before. Before it had never concerned him but he knew it was always to do with Jack.

Owen watched him go and then went to Tosh.

"Come on, don't start that now!"

"But Jack said…"

"Bollocks to Jack, I'm starting a unilateral strike action." Owen pulled out his phone and pressed a button. "Gwen where are you?"

"Stay there; we're coming to join you." He said, paused and listened to her reply. "No, I am not bringing Jack, just Tosh and Ianto if he wants to… we'll be there in ten minutes." He cut off the call. "Grab your handbag Tosh, and wait by the door. I won't be long."

With that Owen spun on his heel and stalked towards Jack's office.

Jack heard the footsteps and was about to tell whoever it was to go away the moment they stepped in the door. Unless perhaps if it was Ianto. However Owen threw the doors open so the glass rattled violently in the frame and he stalked into the room. He moved to the desk and slammed his hands down on it, glaring at Jack.

"What the fuck is your problem?!" Owen roared. When he was pissed off, his voice could project almost as well as Jack's. "And if you tell me it's because Ianto gave you two pints of lager and showed up your inability to handle alcohol then I will risk messing up my right hand punching you!"

Jack sat back in his chair, unable to answer for a moment.

"He knows I don't drink."

"Your feeble response to it is not the reason you usually give though is it. You'd rather tell us about your desire to run away."

"Well, he shouldn't have given me what is technically a drug without my permission."

Owen snorted, "he also gave you coffee but I don't see you worrying about that. Plus it's just a fraction rich from someone who has been sneaking him extra prescriptions of sleeping pills rather than telling me, his doctor, that he has a serious problem."

Jack pulled back a little. "He didn't want to tell you."

"And don't you think that if you had overruled him and told him it was necessary, then don't you think that he would have done it, and he wouldn't have had all those extra pills that he was forced to buy when you pissed off! And even without your memory you knew something was up with it!"

Owen watched Jack's jaw harden. Now he was getting to what was wrong with Jack. He had so exposed himself during that time, the basic core of his personality, with all the pieces he wanted to hide. It really was him, Owen thought. Ianto was the one that probably knew more than any of them, but it was obvious, if you really looked.

"Well?" Owen asked.

"I suppose."

It wasn't a punch but Owen leant forward his left hand snaked out and he slapped Jack just over his ear, as hard as he could. Jack recoiled at the blow.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"You being a complete prick. Especially to Ianto, and over the last few days considering the fact he has been playing babysitter, you have absolutely no right to treat him like that."

"It wasn't that difficult."

Owen glared at him, suddenly regretting that he didn't have his gun on him.

"I really don't believe you. He was the only one that wanted to look after you, if you remember rightly. And you do remember it all, don't you Jack?"

"Yes." Jack sank down in his seat a little.

"I would have put you in the vaults. I think Tosh would have agreed with me after you terrified the life out of her!"

"It was one quick grope," Jack protested feebly. Owen snorted, Jack flinched back.

"And I could have got Gwen on side as well… but no!" Owen hissed. "Ianto said no, you were scared, it would make it worse to put you down there. I know he's got the patience of a saint but bloody hell he goes above and beyond the call of duty for you."

Owen paused. He didn't breathe. He could have pulled his automatic trick of letting the air wash in an out of his lungs but he didn't. Hopefully that lack of action would impress what he was feeling to Jack.

"After what I have seen over the last few days, you do not treat the tea-boy with the respect he seriously bloody well deserves!" Owen shouted.

"Says the person who keeps calling him a tea-boy," Jack snapped as a retort. It lacked bite, it lacked everything. Owen rolled his eyes and smirked and stated an irrefutable fact.

"He is the tea-boy, he makes the drinks."

"He does more than that!" Jack automatically leapt to Ianto's defence. Owen smirked; he pushed himself up from the desk and straightened up.

"Yes," Owen agreed mildly. "We've had enough of you; you can stew in your own juices as far as we are concerned. I am taking Tosh and Gwen out for a large drink, and Ianto as well if he wants to come along. But I very much doubt he will, don't you?"

Owen didn't wait for an answer. Instead he walked out of Jack's office, not closing the doors behind him. A moment later Jack heard the cog door roll back and he knew he was alone in the hub. Overhead somewhere the pterodactyl screeched, but it wasn't him she wanted. She wanted food, she was looking for Ianto. Who probably, Jack surmised, wasn't coming.

"Bollocks!" he announced and threw his pen across the room in a childish gesture.


	30. Forgiveness

Jack sat in his office smarting from the dressing down that Owen had given him. He was trying to get angry about it, but it was a little hard, because Owen was right. Jack could have probably followed them, gone and tried to do something about it, but Owen had nearly managed to reduce Jack to tears again. With his memory intact it was only nearly, but if Ianto had done it there would have been no contest.

In front of him sat the forms he was supposed to be filling in. He hadn't done any of it, Ianto had done it well enough, and in fact he had done it exactly as Jack would have written them up. There was nothing he could really add to it, except his own handwriting.

He was thinking about that when the sound of the door made him tense. Not daring to look round he waited. He didn't know how long it had been since Owen had shouted at him, but it was long enough and he hoped he wasn't coming back, or Gwen.

Jack waited tensely. The door closed and then there was silence. Jack relaxed a little. That meant it was Ianto. He hadn't left with the rest of them; he had stayed in the hub. Jack bit down on his lip slightly, Ianto hadn't left him. He heard a light creak and the gentle clank of the chains as Ianto went up to the coffee machine.

It was the thing he did everyday. When the others left, he came down and made Jack a coffee. A coffee that always went cold, because by that time of the day he had better things to do alone in the hub with Ianto. Sometimes they stayed here, others Jack took Ianto home.

Jack didn't move, or turn around as he thought about what he should say or do. He had behaved badly all day. Especially towards Ianto. He had just felt….

He jumped as he realised the coffee had been discreetly put down by his elbow and so lost in his thoughts he hadn't reacted, he hadn't realised Ianto was there. He had paused for a second, waiting for Jack's reaction, and since he had none Ianto retreated to the doorway.

Jack looked up. "Ianto?"

"Sir?" Ianto turned, looking even more impassive than he had before. His eyes looked a lot better. Whatever the flash of light had done to him seemed to only have a sort term effect. It had been done simply to get him out of the way, so Jack had been in the line of sight instead.

Jack almost held out his hand, to beckon Ianto over. He would have come, or at least Jack hoped he would, but somehow that didn't seem right. Instead Jack spun the chair and got up, going over to Ianto. Ianto stayed in the doorway of the office and Jack saw his eyes widen slightly in surprise. Jack smiled, remembering his thoughts of yesterday, of how he had liked it when he managed to surprise Ianto like that. To see that flicker of shock on his face. As he reached him Jack put a hand out and took Ianto's left wrist, feeling relief that he didn't try to pull away from him. He squeezed lightly and then stepped close to him. Ianto watched carefully, almost warily. Jack reached up and planted a gentle kiss on Ianto's forehead, and then as he dropped back on his heels he brushed his forehead against Ianto's in what had become a very familiar gesture.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" Ianto asked. Jack grimaced.

"Being grouchy and shouting at you."

"I'm sorry as well, for getting you drunk."

Jack smiled, "I never really could ever handle too much." The hand on Ianto's wrist moved lower so he could take Ianto's hand. "So are we friends again?"

"Yes."

"Good," Jack said. He backed up into his office, back to his chair. He sat back down and pulled Ianto with him. Ianto went with the movement allowing Jack to pull him down onto his lap. Jack put his arms around Ianto's waist to keep him steady.

"I can see where this is going?" Ianto said with a smile. Jack grinned at him.

"A bit obvious isn't it," he agreed. Ianto looked at him for a moment, with a steady gaze, looking into Jack's eyes and trying to interpret what he was seeing.

"I'm not the only person that you're going to have to apologize to," Ianto told him.

Jack's eyes darkened a little but not with anger. He blinked a little and bit down on his lip. Then suddenly he increased his grip on Ianto's waist and put his head against his chest. Ianto felt Jack shudder slightly.

His reaction was automatic. He put one arm around Jack's shoulders and kissed the top of Jack's head. The shudder happened again. Ianto said nothing, he didn't try to reassure Jack, or say something to try and quell the rush of emotion. That would almost surely reduce Jack to the tears he was trying to avoid. Instead Ianto rubbed his hand up and down Jack's shoulder and put his other hand in Jack's hair, in a hint that he could keep himself pressed against him for as long as he liked. Jack moved to press his face into Ianto's chest.

For a few minutes they did nothing but sit there. Ianto still firmly settled in Jack's lap, with Jack clinging onto him. Ianto actually started to wonder if he should say something to provoke a reaction. Perhaps that would be better, for himself and Jack.

"Sorry," Jack eventually said, pre-empting him.

"It's all right," Ianto said gently, he increased the pressure on Jack's head to make sure he kept his head close and he kept his fingers moving in Jack's hair, hoping it was reassuring him. He heard Jack give a light sniff, his shoulders hunching as he huddled closer. Ianto ran his hand from Jack's hair down over his cheekbone feeling the smooth skin. Then Ianto let his fingers trail lower, over Jack's jaw, down his neck, pushing under the collar of his shirt.

"It's all right Jack," he repeated.

"I really didn't mean to be… well… today…" Jack faltered, not really able to explain what he was feeling. Ianto didn't think this part of it had much to do with the loss of his memory, but more the things that it made him remember, or at least realise.

"I know," Ianto said gently. "It was pretty clear that you were still feeling vulnerable."

Jack gave a huff of laughter knowing that was why Ianto had simply not reacted to his behaviour, or at least tried to conceal his own emotions. He was just letting Jack run it out of his system.

"Owen was mean," Jack added. "He nearly made me cry."

Ianto kissed the top of his head again. "What did he say?"

There was a long pause, and Ianto for a moment didn't think he was going to get an answer. But he did. "Basically that I treat you like shit and don't deserve you."

Ianto was glad that his face was buried in Jack's hair, so there was no way Jack could see the slight smirk on his face. Owen had probably said a lot more than that, but Jack had condensed it down into a tiny nugget. Ianto tried not to let his breath hitch as his own emotions threatened to get the better of him.

"What did you say?"

There was another long pause. Ianto kissed him again. "It doesn't matter," he told Jack.

Jack stirred against him almost hinting that it did but he didn't quite know what to say.

"Jack?" Ianto asked rather warily. Jack didn't answer directly but he moved his head slightly, lifting it, still staying pressed against Ianto but hinting that he was paying attention. "You do know that you don't need to worry about me leaving you, right?"

Jack shuddered, sniffed and tightened his grip on Ianto.

"I know. Pretty hypocritical of me, worrying about that and I just disappear off without even… well, without thinking."

Ianto paused, took a deep breath, which Jack had to have felt and asked about the thought that had come to him during the last few days.

"Chasing after, I presume, someone that abandoned you. The Doctor, I am right, he abandoned you?"

Jack inhaled a sharp breath. He had never expected Ianto to be so blunt. As the question that was almost a statement hung in the air Jack actually wondered if he ever expected Ianto to be so perceptive. Jack hadn't ever wanted anyone to know about it, he had tried to conceal so many of his inner thoughts and feelings, but somehow they had remained a part of him, when his memories hadn't. Other people had naturally left him, it was unavoidable. Over the last century or so, while he had been trapped on Earth, people had left, they had died, that was natural, others just a general progression of life moving on, but most of them death by Torchwood. But none of it was their fault; none of it had been willing.

Very carefully, because Jack didn't trust himself to speak, he nodded, his cheek brushed against the material of Ianto's shirt. The cotton felt soft against his skin, the scent of the fabric softener so familiar and soothing. So familiar in fact, that he had recognised it even without his memory, on that first night, in the unfamiliar spare room.

"That was why you went running after him," Ianto said. Again Jack nodded, not trusting his voice. "How long did you have to wait? I know you've been at Torchwood for a hell of a long time."

Jack tensed. His file wasn't exactly hidden, or locked away, but it would take a great deal of patience to find. Having said that, Ianto had the patience, as Owen had pointed out, and he also knew the archives better than anyway.

"Bit more than a century," Jack said. He felt Ianto tense, and his fingers stopped running through Jack's hair, but he didn't let go.

"So what made you come back?" Ianto eventually asked.

His voice sounded calm, oddly detached. He noticed that himself, he hoped Jack didn't too much. However hurt Ianto had been by Jack's disappearance, and confused by his return, he had sensed something about Jack. An almost desperate need to please him, first with the offer of the date, something Ianto had tried previously and which Jack had responded to in a rather patronising fashion. Also managing to avoid it at the same time. Then after the return he had changed.

The second change had been even more surprising, which made it a little frightening. Jack started to talk to him more. At the beginning it was about nothing, but then subtle hints of it started to dawn on Ianto. Jack was often quite good a dropping hints, or saying things that had no real connection to anything around them. You ended up knowing that Jack was not from Earth and not from the current time, but you still didn't know anything more. Ianto couldn't honestly say he knew much more about Jack factually, but he had a greater knowledge of him emotionally.

But even then the fear of Jack being left, abandoned, had surprised him. Jack never seemed the type to be alone, but maybe that was it. You couldn't see it.

Jack didn't answer the question. He closed his eyes and tried to think of something.

"It was just…" he paused.

"Did The Doctor abandon you again?" Ianto asked with a slight edge to his voice. If he ever met this Doctor, he was likely to punch him one. However he felt Jack shake his head.

"No, I just couldn't stay," Jack said. He hadn't been able to. The offer was there, to walk away from Torchwood and somehow avoid the consequences of his leaving, not having to explain anything. Then the memories wouldn't have been quite so vivid. It was why he had refused point blank to give any hint to what had happened over the time he was gone, of explaining the year that never was. Because that would eventually lead to one of them asking where they were in that time.

Jack could certainly be proud of them, but he didn't want to tell them. All he wanted to do was make it up to them, especially the most determined of them. It had been nice without those memories and thoughts knocking around his head because it occurred to Jack now, he wasn't coping with them very well.

He had come back for them, but mostly he had come back for his own reasons, his own selfish reasons.

"Why not?" Ianto asked interrupting his thoughts. "What happened?"

Jack winced so violently that Ianto jumped. He would have pitched off Jack's lap except the arms around his waist tensed to keep him steady. Whatever was upsetting Jack, it wasn't upsetting him all that much, Ianto thought as he felt Jack's erection rub against his leg.

"Jack?" Ianto asked gently. He started twining his fingers through Jack's hair again. Jack's face stayed pressed into his chest, like a shy child who didn't want to answer the grown up's question.

"I can't tell you," Jack said.

"Can't or won't?" Ianto asked, but his voice was gentle. There was no accusation in it, just the knowledge of Jack's need to keep secrets.

"Can't," Jack said. "Please, I can't talk about it."

"Okay," Ianto said. He moved his hand, out of Jack's hair and down his face again until he could cup his chin and he lifted Jack's head, pulling back so he could plant a gentle kiss on his lips. He hadn't cried, Ianto noticed clinically, but he looked dangerously close. As they kissed Jack responded eagerly but seemed hesitant. Ianto pulled back to look at him.

"I wouldn't have minded you know," Jack said, increasing his grip on Ianto.

"What?" Ianto asked, and then realisation dawned. "I couldn't Jack, it wouldn't have been ethical."

"No, but it would have been an experience." Jack gave a bright grin, trying to fight the shadows in his mind. "Especially for you."

"I suppose, but it wasn't right."

"How the hell did you manage such self-restraint?" Jack asked very cheekily.

"I just thought about how I would feel if you did it to me."

Jack's face sobered a little. He moved one hand to smooth Ianto's shirt where he had rumpled it. There were also one or two wet spots on the light blue cotton. Jack put his hand over them.

"Good point. I certainly wouldn't have done it. For that reason among many others."

"I hope the top one was that it's utterly wrong."

"Yes," Jack said. His hand slid up Ianto's leg, debating the situation slightly. "So, what would you have done if you had given into temptation?"

"This is bizarre. You get pissed off because I give you two pints of lager but you apparently wouldn't mind being taken advantage of sexually when you were completely vulnerable."

"It wasn't taking advantage, I remember wanting to."

"Was that because you really wanted to or because instinct made you think that your insecurity would lessen?" Ianto asked him. Again he kept his voice gentle. Jack's eyes blinked rapidly for a moment.

"Both," he said. "So, you didn't think about it at all? Or imagine anything?" Jack persisted. Ianto knew it was a cover; Jack was trying to divert him, or maybe divert his own memories away from the stressful conversation. Like he often would. Still Ianto thought he would have time to work on whatever was bothering Jack afterwards.

"It wouldn't have happened quite like this." Ianto contemplated his position on Jack's lap.

"Really?" Jack asked, sounding very interested. Ianto moved, being careful of his damaged arm around Jack's shoulders. He slid off Jack's lap and sat back against the desk, his used his left hand to pull Jack up off his seat and he pulled him close. He put his arm around Jack's waist. Jack, in response, tentatively put his arms around Ianto, as if he expected to be thrown off.

Ianto waited, Jack took the grip and moved to rest his head on Ianto's shoulder, nuzzling his face into his neck. For a moment Ianto expected Jack's lips to touch his skin, but he stopped a fraction away, waiting. Being very careful Ianto put his hand up to stroke Jack's hair.

"So, how did it feel the last few days? Now you've got your memory back."

Jack's head shifted a little. "Frustrating, and not like that," he said as Ianto gave a snort of laughter. "You still know that there are things you should understand, stuff that seems so obvious and you know, you just know it's in there somewhere, but you can't seem to reach in and get it out."

Ianto thought about that, still stroking Jack's hair. "That sounds awfully familiar."

"Am I really that bad?"

"No, I think you could be a little worse."

Jack lifted his head to smile at Ianto. Ianto leant forward and kissed him. Jack responded, but this time it was different. It was very much like how he reacted over the last few days. He followed Ianto and stopped where he drew the line. Ianto spread his legs slightly and pulled Jack closer so their hips could press together. Jack held onto him tightly and Ianto broke away from the kiss, moving so he could trace along Jack's neck.

He shuddered and gasped as he felt Ianto's touch. Ianto regarded him for a moment, feeling Jack pressing him hard against the desk. He looked around the office and then gave a quick glance in the direction of the porthole down into Jack's private domain.

Ianto took his hand away from Jack's face and gently pushed him back. Jack's face flickered with something close to panic as Ianto straightened up.

"Come on," Ianto said. He slid his hand into Jack's and took a firm hold. He pulled Jack out from behind the desk towards the door.

"Where are we going?" Jack asked. He hoped that Ianto didn't plan to take him to find the others. Ianto probably knew where they had gone and Jack didn't feel up to facing them. Not just yet anyway. Ianto smiled, obviously seeing the fear in his face, as well as the need, hope and nerves. Jack hadn't as yet battened everything down.

"Come on." He picked Jack's coat off the rack and draped it over his arm. Then he pulled a little harder to coax Jack towards the door.

"I'm taking you home."


	31. Reunion

Jack coat dropped onto the first three stairs in the flat. Ianto's suit jacket overlapped taking the third, fourth and fifth. On the two above that dropped Jack's shirt, Ianto's tie and shirt landed above that. Shoes followed. They had the sense, as they kissed, undressed and groped their way up the stairs, to wait until they reached level ground at the top before attempting to take off their trousers.

Again Ianto took the lead on that. In fact he realised he hadn't really had Jack undressing him. He had taken the lead on both of them. It wasn't any sort of game that Jack was playing, pretending he was still without his memory. There was something more to it, as if he was afraid to take it any further. Ianto wanted to know which of Jack's memories had been the most interesting. However, he got the feeling he wasn't going to ask him. Whatever they were had frightened the hell out of Jack. So much so, he couldn't even talk about them. Not yet anyway.

He unfastened Jack's trousers and slid them down. Jack lifted one foot then the other to get out of them. Then Ianto grabbed his wrist and dragged him into the bedroom. Jack followed along behind without any resistance.

As they went into the bedroom Ianto pulled Jack round and sat him on the edge of the bed. Jack looked up a little wide eyed, Ianto's hand again wandered into his hair, this time gripping it firmly as he pushed Jack back on the bed. Jack moved willingly feeling the gentle tug on his scalp until he was lying on the bed. He lay back as Ianto kissed him, pushing him down and his head connected with the pillow.

One of Jack's hands tentatively moved over Ianto's hip to the waistband of his trousers. Jack expertly opened them to slide his hand in. He remembered being very bold last night, wanting to please Ianto, or at least trying to. This time he just moved to push his trousers down leaving his underwear in place. Ianto's hand moved to push Jack's own underwear down.

"Hey!" Jack protested his voice a little muffled as Ianto kissed him. Ianto stopped and pulled back.

"What?"

Jack looked faintly embarrassed. "I've still got my socks on."

Ianto giggled, "oh yeah, you think you look silly if you've only got your socks on."

Jack pouted slightly. "All men, and a few aliens that spring to mind, look silly if they've got nothing but their socks on."

"And we can't have you looking silly can we?" Ianto said with a grin. He ran his tongue down Jack's sternum, over his belly, pausing as he reached the waistband of Jack's underwear. He gently planted a kiss on Jack's groin, feeling the hardness underneath the light material and then he traced his way down Jack's legs to pull off his socks, making sure he ran his fingertips over Jack's insteps as he did so. Both times Jack jumped, squeaking the first time and moaning the second.

"Better?" Ianto asked as he dropped Jack's socks on the floor

"Yes," Jack said.

He watched as Ianto slid his own trousers down, pulling them down to his ankles and dragging them off, taking his own socks with them. He tossed them over the end of the bed and left them on the floor. Ianto wasn't much in the mood to tidy up. He wanted Jack, he had wanted Jack over the last three days but hadn't dared, hadn't wanted to violate that innocence in any way. It would have been a major abuse of trust, despite what Jack said. The others had put a scared, vulnerable Jack into his care, they had trusted him, Jack had trusted him. Ianto couldn't have fought that despite what some of his mind had thought to the contrary.

Ianto looked down at Jack. He lay back on the bed, just waiting for Ianto. His eyes still looked nervous, the shadow there now was one that Ianto could wipe away. As he smiled at him and Jack returned it and that darkness started to fade away. It made Ianto wonder exactly when it had happened. When had Jack become suddenly so dependant on him?

The point was the time had never existed. Jack couldn't tell Ianto that and that hurt. That hurt Jack more than he had ever thought possible. It had taken a third, very dispassionate party to point that out to him as they had ripped through his memories. Not unkindly, they had sensed the trauma, and on those occasions had returned Jack on some levels to what was happening around him physically. He wasn't truly there, he wasn't involved, he couldn't have influenced anything, but he could watch. And then, the strangest thing of all, he remembered everything. He had been there. When his mind was returned, all his memories were present, he had two sets of thoughts for the same time frame. It was confusing, frightening almost, but they all had one consistent theme to them. Jack had wanted Ianto.

He was calming, reassuring and when Jack really needed to exert himself on someone, utterly pliable. And Ianto had said that he loved him. He really did.

"Jack?" Ianto's gentle voice brought him back to reality, as did the gentle kiss to his forehead.

"Sorry," he said a little breathlessly. Ianto kissed him on the lips. Jack responded, he slid his arms around Ianto's neck to keep him in place. He felt frightened of letting him go. Ianto went with him for a few moments before he tensed and pulled back. He fought his way out of the kiss and looked down at Jack. Their faces were so close that Ianto had trouble focussing on Jack. He tried to read his eyes but it was too hard.

"Jack, calm down," Ianto said steadily. He pushed up, fighting Jack's grip, but not hard. "Let go a little."

He went so far as to relax his arms but as Ianto rose up Jack laced his fingers together and cupped them at the nape of Ianto's neck. He could have tried to get away, fought to get away but he didn't. Ianto looked down at Jack.

"What's the matter?" Ianto asked. Jack looked up at him. Ianto was really searching for an answer. Not something on the surface, he wanted something deeper. Not what had upset him about his recent memory loss, but under that, his fears. Just his fears, it occurred to Jack, it had been a thought that he had fought for so long, he didn't have many hopes.

"Hey, come on," Ianto said gently as Jack gave in to the tears that had fought their way up all day. Jack had tried to hold them down, fighting what he was feeling so voraciously but he couldn't do it. He couldn't hold out a day, never mind trying to think of forever.

Jack refused to let go of him, the hands locked around the back of his neck. Ianto probably could have tried to fight his way out but that would have probably made the whole situation worse. Jack could panic, he could take it as some form of rejection or he could actually, inadvertently, fight and hurt him.

Instead Ianto slid his right hand under Jack's left shoulder and tugged gently. He couldn't use a huge amount of pressure but he moved in Jack's grip, gently trying to coax him into a sitting position and Jack seemed to take the hint.

Very carefully Ianto pulled him up, drawing him into his arms. It was a lot easier to comfort Jack sitting up than it was to cuddle him lying down. He pulled Jack into his arms, thinking rather cynically that they were in very much the same position as last night; only the dilemma was now a little different.

"It's all right Jack," Ianto said gently. He held Jack in his arms planting light kisses on his tear stained cheeks and running his fingers through his hair. Jack's grip refused to release, at least for the moment, so Ianto stayed with him until his sobs reduced a little. And then eventually they trailed out into little hiccups. Ianto kissed Jack, peppering his face, neck and jaw line, until Jack had settled down.

"Feel better?" Ianto asked. He didn't press what was wrong. If Jack had something out of his system from that little hysterical attack then that was good enough. Jack nodded. His eyes and cheeks were now a little red and his face was damp.

"Hang on," Ianto turned in the grip. Jack released him slightly, unlacing his fingers rather reluctantly so Ianto could lean over. Jack however still kept his hands on Ianto, just in case he needed to drag him back. Ianto reached for the tissue box on the bedside cabinet. He had started putting one there recently. It was always useful to have.

Turning back Ianto wiped Jack's face up, blotting away the tears. Then he gathered up the loose folds of tissue and jammed them under Jack's nose.

"Blow," he ordered. Jack obeyed and Ianto wiped up the mess Jack had made.

"That's not quite what I usually do with that order," Jack said shakily but he smiled. Ianto moved closer to him, Jack shifted his legs tucking them under so Ianto wasn't hampered by them. Ianto leant forward and kissed him gently; Jack reached up almost to try and grip him frantically again but then stopped and just made sure he had his hands on Ianto. One on his arm, the other on his leg.

"Probably not," Ianto said.

"Sorry," Jack said. Ianto sighed and pulled him close.

"You don't need to be sorry Jack. What you need to do is tell me if you are going to do that, or if you want to talk. Okay?"

"Yes, I… it's hard to watch someone sift through your life and look at it like they just want to examine it."

"Did they hurt you?"

"No, I hurt me. They worried about it, when they thought I was getting too stressed they shunted me off to watch how you were doing with me."

"Please tell me you didn't watch the thing in the pub?"

"No, I didn't."

Ianto breathed a sigh of relief at that. It was one moment that he wished he could really erase. Thankfully Ianto had decided it was the only mistake he had made in those last few days. Jack took several deep breaths and looked up at Ianto.

"Sorry, that's not exactly the huge romantic make up scene we were trying for," Jack said a little ruefully. He wiped his nose again and mopped his eyes. Ianto smoothed down Jack's ruffled hair and grinned.

"I don't know, we did a whole great Mills and Boon almost bodice ripping thing up the stairs," Ianto said. Jack giggled. He ran his hands down Ianto's torso to his underwear. Another pair that Jack had bought for him, black with the Tasmanian Devil on them. When had he bought those, he wondered, was it a special occasion. He couldn't remember.

"Did you really have to tell them about my underwear buying fetish?"

Ianto snorted with laughter. "Think yourself lucky, I could have told them why you started doing it in the first place."

Jack smiled; he dropped his head onto Ianto's shoulder and wrapped his arms back around him. He held on tightly again, as if he was still afraid Ianto was going to disappear.

"You didn't tell them…" Jack started and then stopped. Ianto hugged him a little closer in an attempt to be reassuring. It seemed to work, he felt Jack relax against him. "You didn't tell them about me feeding the ducks in the park."

Jack sounded oddly apprehensive over another potentially embarrassing moment for him. Or at least Jack saw it like that. Ianto didn't. He didn't really know what the others would make of it. Although it was guaranteed that Owen would get his money's worth of wind up's out of it.

"No I didn't," Ianto said. "It was something I wanted to keep for myself."

Jack turned his head to look up at him. Ianto grinned. "It was very sweet."

Jack groaned dramatically, closing his eyes and dropping his head against Ianto's chest.

"It was," Ianto reiterated.

"God, my reputation is ruined forever," Jack said. "What with Owen's stupid report and everyone now pissed off at me, I'm not doing very well am I?"

"Well, I think in Owen's case you could probably just keep sending his reports back with corrections on them in red ink. Sometimes his spelling is appalling and the less said about his grammar the better. Then he'll get fed up, eventually."

"Good plan," Jack agreed. He moved slightly, pressing himself closer to Ianto. This time the demand was nothing to do with his insecurity. Jack ran his tongue along Ianto's collar bone and nipped his skin, close to his throat. Ianto turned his head and kissed Jack, who responded. Ianto carefully moved so he could push Jack back down on the bed. One of his hands pulled at Jack's underwear.

All thoughts were suddenly forgotten with the sudden rush to get at each other. As Ianto yanked Jack's underwear down there was the sound of ripping material. Jack gave a muffled protest, pulling away from the kiss momentarily to say.

"Did you just…?"

He was cut off as Ianto kissed him again. Then he pulled away, his hand dragging at Jack's underwear as he moved down the bed. There was a second sound of material tearing, louder and longer than before. Jack giggled.

"Hey! That means…!"

"Yeah, yeah," Ianto's voice was muffled as he kissed, licked and nipped his way up Jack's inner thigh. "It means I owe you a new pair."


	32. Good Endings

The afternoon was slowly fading away, into dusk, to move on to night. As the light dimmed, the shadows lengthened in the bedroom casting an eerie glow into the room. Neither Ianto nor Jack felt particularly inclined to get up to close the curtains. Instead they allowed the encroaching darkness to cover them. They both felt safe from it. The night couldn't touch them.

Jack lay with his arm loosely wrapped around Ianto's waist. His head rested on Ianto's chest and Ianto's arms were curled around him, holding him protectively. Jack wouldn't have ever thought it possible. Someone could hold him, and somehow make everything better.

The irony was he could do that for Ianto. It had never occurred to Jack it was ready to work the other way round.

Maybe the rather clinical filtration of his memories had made him think about that. There was not, especially over the last century or so as he had almost single-mindedly waited for The Doctor, a great deal of what he could count as good memories. There had been Torchwood, his work there, some of it open and a good portion of it covert to try and protect The Doctor.

It had shown Jack, in a way, just how depressingly empty his life had become. So he hadn't exactly been in a good frame of mind when he returned to it. Hence him trying to find excuses… for what he really didn't know… but he had taken it out on the rest of them. The people that were so loyally there for him.

That wasn't to say that there hadn't been anyone before them. Prior to that there had been people at Torchwood that had loved him and cared about him, but there was some distance between them. He was still on some levels a Torchwood experiment. They reported on him, something which he had used to his advantage on occasion, to Torchwood 1. Also made notes on his behaviour and used him for highly dangerous missions as they could easily and dispassionately put him at risk.

The people he had now were the ones that he himself had chosen. Who had come to him and were there because he wanted them. Jack had never truly thought that that one simple fact could make him so vulnerable. It hurt a hell of a lot more to lose them, and because of that he had trapped Owen when it probably would have been better to leave well alone.

But the fact was irrefutable. They were his and he loved them all, in different ways, with different strengths. But the strongest bond lay without doubt with the person who was now keeping him gently cradled in his arms.

Ianto's loyalty went above and beyond everyone else's, simply because Ianto's life had taken a similar turn to Jack's. After Lisa, Ianto had clung to Torchwood and to Jack because there was nothing else. Ironically it had been Torchwood that had ripped away the very fabric of his life in the first place. Twice it had been responsible for the destruction of the love of his life. Lisa's soul had been destroyed at Canary Wharf and Jack had killed her, finishing off all of Ianto's hopes.

With nothing else to feel Ianto had given himself to Jack, in every way possible. And Jack had wanted it. He hadn't realised how much until it had happened, and now he realised how much he depended on it. And Ianto understood the deep-seated need to suppress the bad memories. Even though it could be argued that facing them was a better option.

Despite the innocence of the statement when he had originally said it Jack had been right. He did love Ianto. In more ways than he could have thought possible.

Jack stirred slightly, moving his arm as it started to go a little dead and then he settled back down. Ianto's arms tightened their grip and Jack felt a kiss planted on the top of his head.

"Did I wake you?"

"I wasn't asleep." Ianto said in a low tone. It wasn't drowsy, he had just been rather comfortable to the point that he didn't want to move. Jack snuggled closer against him.

"Feeling better?" Ianto asked him. Jack nodded.

"Much." He didn't feel tired considering how active they had been that afternoon. Ianto however, in charge and aware of Jack's slightly fragile state, had been incredibly gentle with him. He certainly hadn't rushed, there had been no silly games, Ianto instead had just taken great pains to make Jack feel reassured, calmed and above all loved. The pleasure that had come with it was just a side-effect, and nothing more.

"A good memory then?" Ianto said.

"Definitely."

"What's another one?" Ianto suddenly asked. Jack stirred slightly but he didn't lift his head.

"What?"

"You said that you felt as if there were more bad memories than good. Think of a good one."

"Like what?" Jack asked, confused but oddly excited. He knew what Ianto was getting at. Just one step at a time to start using the good memories to counter-balance the bad and at the same time he could start talking to him.

"I don't know. Anything!" Ianto murmured into his hair. "What springs to mind?"

Jack's eyes flashed open as he thought of something. He glanced up at Ianto, who looked down at him, his eyes curious and a slight smile on his face. If Jack backed down then Ianto would let it go. However Jack knew he couldn't keep this up, he needed help with this.

"Okay. London, 1941, I was stationed there; well… everyone thought I was. Long story," Jack said. Ianto's hand moved to stroke his hair. Jack took that as a hint to continue.

"In the middle of a German air raid, I was planning to go follow a friend into a dark air raid shelter…"

Ianto giggled at that.

"…And then what do I find but a blonde, with an excellent bottom and wearing a Union Jack tee-shirt…"

"Of course it was a blonde," Ianto said cynically.

"Storytelling here!" Jack objected. Ianto kissed him. Jack snuggled back down against him.

"…And hanging from a barrage balloon in the middle of an air raid. That's not exactly what you expect to see."

"So?"

"Well, neither was I. I had a space ship parked just outside Big Ben, and this was when I was a Time Agent. I was mortal as well."

Ianto stirred, this was then a very long time ago.

"Torchwood didn't even technically exist."

"Of course it did around that time; so how is that possible?"

"Because this is before The Doctor met Queen Victoria, before she set up Torchwood. This is when I met The Doctor."

"Who was blonde?" Ianto asked.

"No! Well, yeah kind of, but no, the blonde was a girl called Rose."

"Rose Tyler?" Ianto asked.

"How did you…?" Jack's head came up off Ianto's chest and he looked at him in shock.

"Her name was on the list of the dead at Torchwood 1 after the battle. It was the name you looked for. Not The Doctor's."

"The Doctor can take care of himself. Anyway, Rose was hanging by a barrage balloon and I guessed that was a little strange so when she fell I used the transport beam of the spaceship to reel her in."

"I bet you did."

"I was the dashing hero."

"And why am I getting the feeling you were in uniform?"

"Hey! I look great in uniform," Jack said. "I'll demonstrate one day."

"I'll hold you to that. So the dashing hero saved the girl?"

"I did indeed, and then she fainted into my arms."

"And you probably loved that."

Jack's head dropped again and burrowed against him. "Yeah. You could say that. I thought… I thought at the beginning they were from the Time Agency. I was running a con, found a piece of rubbish lying around London, put it in a place where I knew a bomb would land, figured they could buy it, I take the money and run, they get nothing."

"Nice."

"I was a con-man, it was what I did."

"So?"

"So, instead I met The Doctor, found my junk was live with nanogenes and people with gasmasks fused to their faces starting running around the East End. The Doctor fixed it."

"Hang on! That is in the Torchwood archives, they were there. They sealed off part of the East End near the Albion hospital!"

"Yeah, how do you know?"

"The investigation was led by one Captain Jack Harkness, who had apparently been there before."

"Yeah, are you keeping up with this? The me that met The Doctor never saw anything to do with Torchwood; it was just the basic military that locked off the site. The later version of me, the Torchwood me, saw something else. The same time, two different things, one me, in essence. Do you understand why The Doctor abandoned me? He can't stand to be around me."

"I can, and I understand it. Two of you could have stood in the same place and you two would never have seen each other, because you didn't exist at the same time and place, even thought you were there in what was the same time and place."

Jack blinked, he lay still against Ianto. Ianto tightened his grip, hugged Jack carefully, knowing that he had stunned him slightly.

"That's not the point, good memories Jack."

"I had to stop the bomb; I took it on my ship and had to take it away. I couldn't have got away on my own; The Doctor rescued me and looked after me, as much as he could."

Ianto moved slightly, he lifted Jack's head and kissed him gently. "Well, his time of doing that is over. It's mine now, for as long as you want me to."

Jack smiled, "that might be a very long time. And speaking of Rose and her excellent bottom, that memory might lead me into remembering seeing another fantastic backside for the first time." Jack's hand slid down to caress Ianto's arse.

"Oh yes?"

"I do remember a great view as a certain someone scrabbled on the floor and dragged a mad cat out from under the coffee table and I wasn't the only one enjoying the view."

"Ah, the admin section."

"To whom you were the dashing hero."

Ianto smiled. Jack grinned and then frowned as something occurred to him and he looked around.

"Speaking of which where is the psychotic mammal?"

"The vets, I phoned to ask them to keep him for an extra couple of days. I didn't think amnesiac you and a convalescing cat would work too well. I can pick him up tomorrow."

"What, did he get his…?" Jack grinned.

"Jack, he was neutered when we found him, so no… he had a blockage in his gut, they needed to operate to remove it."

"What like a hair ball?"

Ianto grimaced, shifting Jack in his arms and he took a deep breath. "Something like that, you remember those holes in your coat…?"

Jack's head shot up, his eyes widened in outrage and Ianto saw his cheeks flush with the same emotion. His jaw dropped.

"I knew it! He did it on purpose. He doesn't like me, he's out to get me!"

"He doesn't like anyone Jack. Plus he's a cat; I don't think he's out to destroy the world by chewing the hem of your coat. Besides I mended the holes, it's fine. Which is more than can be said for the cat."

"I'm gonna kill him… no… I'm going to skin him… or take off his tail. I'll have him for that."

"Now that might worry him," Ianto started to giggle, Jack looked even more outraged, but his eyes started to brighten up with humour. He looked better than he had done all day. In short he looked completely happy. The summer sky was back in his eyes.

The moment was broken as the phone rang. When, during a pause, Ianto had gone to make coffee, he had brought his phone up as well. Just in case. It was a necessary precaution they usually took.

"Saved by the bell," Ianto said and he reached for the phone. Jack scowled.

"Don't answer it."

"Better had," Ianto said. "Hello!"

"Where are you?!"

"At home," Ianto said.

"Where's Jack?"

"Right here." Jack listened to Ianto intently as he talked. It was one of three people, but which one? Jack wondered.

"What the hell are you doing there?"

"What do you think?"

"Oh for fuck's sake!"

'Owen' Ianto mouthed at Jack. Jack scowled.

"Tell him to go away!" Jack said snuggling back into Ianto's side.

"Jack says hi," Ianto said grinning.

"Yeah, right!" Owen snapped.

"Did not!" Jack hissed, he moved his head slightly and nipped Ianto's nipple, making sure he did it hard enough to get a reaction.

"Ooohh," Ianto gasped, and then he looked down at Jack. "Owen says hi."

"Like I am going to believe that," Jack said reaching over to bit Ianto's other nipple.

"I bloody well did not!" Owen roared.

Ianto rolled his eyes. "Look I know why you called and Jack will apologise to everyone in the morning. Goodbye Owen." Ianto hung up the phone. Jack put his head back down on Ianto's shoulder.

"Thanks."

"I don't think you are up to it just yet. But when you are, say sorry properly, not just some silly flirting get out, all right?"

"Yes, I promise," Jack said. That would be hard. He hadn't even apologised to Owen for bringing him back from the dead and leaving him stuck there. Somehow Jack had managed to get himself out of that one. This one, Ianto wouldn't let him. So to please him, Jack would do as he was told.

Ianto put his arms back around Jack and in response Jack moved back into his embrace. He put his head back on Ianto's chest and closed his eyes.

"Ianto," Jack said his voice low and contented. Ianto cuddled closer to him.

"What?"

"Thank you for looking after me."

"For as long as I can, I always will."


End file.
